The Normandy Saga: To Defy Death
by MakoGT
Summary: In a surprise attack on the SSV Normandy, The First Human Spectre, Commander Shepard, was killed. Leaving his crew heartbroken and lost. With his death, the Galaxy allowed the threat of the reapers slip from memory. Restored to life by sworn enemies, the Commander begins the fight anew. Tali'Zorah/MShep romance. Slow burn. M for language, gore, more. Cover art by Palavenmoons
1. Foreword

Hey everyone! Welcome to the second installment of the Normandy Saga! To Defy Death! (If I hit a eureka on a better title I might change it, no promises.) This foreword is really only for newcomers to my stories and profile, so, if you've already been reading, just know that the schedule ain't changing. Uploads every Monday and Friday. Now, while I tell newcomers what they need to know, you can go ahead and read. For the others, welcome! Odd place to catch me, so I'll say a few quick things. By this time, I've written a full novelization of Mass Effect Andromeda, over 600k words, which I'm very proud of, (a Vetra/Scott one.) I've also, as you'd expect, completed a novelization of ME1. Now, here we are at the one I've really been waiting for. ME2. I would recommend you go back and read through my ME1 story, at the very least, before reading this one. You don't need to read my Andromeda story, but there are occasional references. After all, they haven't left just yet… No, don't expect story changing things, like Vetra being at Gar- I mean, Archangel's, hideout. Or Drack running around on Tuchanka when that time comes. That being said, this story is not a perfect replica of the game either. I've done a few twists on things. Such as Shep's relationship with crew members, his past, so on, so forth. This is a trend that will continue. This story is written in the first person, but as you will see in the Prelude, it is not locked onto a single character. You'll see the name of the person who's perspective it's in at every section of the chapter. (By section, I mean parts separated by those horizontal lines.) Two more things to add. I'm not creating this alone. I have two friends and editors who help out whenever they can. Go over chapters, brainstorm ideas, etc. Their names are River, and Palaven. Obviously not their real names, but Riv and Pal is what I generally call them. As do the members of my discord server for my readers. Which is the second and last thing I wanted to mention. Now, this website doesn't work well with URLs, so I have an alternative. Friend me on Discord at MakoGT#5797. Now, that's all. Newcomers, I hope you read my other works, and enjoy this novelization of ME2, with a Tali/MShep romance.


	2. Prelude

**Dr. Liara T'Soni**

Finally, after all this time, I had found it. I had found him. Tracked him from the clutches of merc bands, to Omega and the Blue Suns, and even to the Shadow Broker. What the Broker would possibly want with his body, I've no idea, beyond selling it to the highest bidder. And who would that bidder even be? Some pervert or sycophant? Someone who just wanted a trophy they didn't deserve? I suppose it doesn't matter now. But this venture had cost me. Both in credits, which I did not care about, and in a friend. He gave himself up to the Broker to allow my escape. I still don't understand why.

And now… I had a choice.

"Dr. T'Soni?" The brown-haired woman asked, waiting to get an answer. She was a difficult woman to read. A skilled operative, not giving away many signs. Hm, strange. Not so long ago I'd have been completely oblivious to such cues. But now I know to look for them, and she isn't exhibiting any of them. This woman, and some of the operatives with her, had helped me on Omega. And upon learning who they were, I nearly shot them on the spot.

Cerberus. The organization we ran into several times committing atrocious acts. But there were revelations I could not ignore.

Unlike most of the Galaxy, they believed in the Reaper threat, and were committed to stopping it. I had spoken with their leader, an enigmatic man, calling himself, The Illusive Man had… perhaps confirmed is the wrong word. They could be lying after all. But not only were they committed against the Reapers, but they claimed they had the means to bring the body of the man we had just retrieved back to life. To somehow, restore the almost sickening, unrecognizable mass of charred flesh and muscle and bone, still holding a human form, back to that of a healthy, strong, human man.

Commander John Shepard.

He deserved a proper burial. True, he had a service already, but that was before anyone knew his body was even retrievable, let alone relatively intact. But which did he deserve more? A proper burial, and respect to his body, or even the slightest of chances to live once more? I had done what I could to take my measure of the brown-haired woman, Miranda Lawson, and believe that at least she seems earnest. And if they are lying, well, at least the man himself is gone, his soul returned to the universe… if I can even decide whether I believe Siari anymore. Either way, I suppose, his body is an empty shell.

"Damn it," I murmured. Miranda raised her brow. "On one condition. You keep me up to date on the progress. A feed to a camera in the facility watching the body." She put a finger to her ear, an earpiece.

"Sir?" she paused. Listening. She removed her finger and returned her gaze to me. "The Illusive Man is willing to grant this, but we shall provide the equipment, and ensure it is untraceable. I'm sure you understand, given nature of our organization, and the nature of the Lazarus project. Further, you cannot breathe a word of this to anyone. Not even to any survivors of the Normandy. Do so, and your connection to the camera, and any updates will be cut off. Frankly you'd be better off not doing so anyway, as it would prevent any disappointment on the off chance we fail." This gave me pause. If anyone deserved to have any idea about this, it was Tali. We may not have spoken since she departed for the fleet, but how could I forget what his loss did to her? I hope one day she can forgive me. As for the rest of them? I've done what I could to keep track of them. Garrus vanished, Kaidan is back with the Alliance, and Joker has been spending his days in bars. He blames himself.

"And you have no intentions of changing anything about him or controlling him?"

"There will be physical enhancements, both in part to restore damaged organs and replace what may be unsalvageable. This will include some level of gene therapy, but mostly cybernetics. A preliminary analysis shows his heart, brain, digestive tract, lungs and most bones as being intact enough to not be replaced. That being said, some organs in the digestive tract and the lungs may require some amount of cybernetics to ensure they function, and most if not all bones will be strengthened by cybernetics as well. Increase bone density, for example. His mind will be entirely unchanged. When it comes to the man himself, we want him back exactly as he was. As for control, the Illusive Man firmly believes that any attempts to do so would quickly lead to suicide," Miranda explained.

"You'd be right," I remarked, stone faced. I then sighed. "We have a deal."

 **Garrus Vakarian**

Omega. A lawless cesspool. Great place for someone like me to start a life of Vigilantism. I'm fed up with the Citadel. The Council, at least, aside from Anderson, just seemed to forget that the Reapers even existed, and the red tape only got thicker, making it harder to do my job. I still remembered Shepard's lessons. This wasn't red tape preventing me from putting innocents at risk. This was red tape keeping me from going after criminals or letting crooks walk. And of course, it wasn't helping that mom was only getting worse. Between that, the red tape, and starting to think everything Shepard and the team did was all for nothing? Well, I needed to get away. Before I did something _really_ stupid. So I did something not as stupid. I think. I went to Omega, found some… like-minded individuals, and recruited them to my cause. Take down the gangs, protect the innocent. Make a difference. And I think we're getting somewhere. Slowly, but surely. Aria T'Loak still holds the station in an iron grip, but we've been smart. We leave her operations alone, for now, and she ignores us. She'll regret that someday. Once the Blue Suns, Blood Pack, and Eclipse are weakened enough, or just forced off entirely, and I have enough people, Archangel will bring the fight to the Pirate Queen. Someday…

Heh, Archangel. An old human couple had said I was like one after I stopped some Vorcha scum from mugging them. Right as I arrived. Something from one of Earth's religions, a protector, a guardian. I'll live up to that name. I'll live up to Shepard. I glanced back at the rifle he had given me so long ago. I had it mounted on a wall in my quarters. I'd be using it, but damn, the last few months had a bit of a leap, tech wise. Guns now had a thermal clip system instead of the old heat sink. True, we're essentially back to using limited ammunition and clips and magazines, but the tradeoff is that we're able to make our weapons hit _much_ harder. To counter this, militaries and police forces had to make modifications to our shields, else we might as well not have them at all anymore. So, armor has changed. Shield modulators built almost throughout, without sacrificing the strength of the armor itself. It's like the entire suit is a shield generator, every inch overlapping significantly to ensure that if armor does get damaged, that when shields recharge, it will still provide full coverage. That being said, the entire suit's shields still draw from the same power supply. Collapsing one section, will still collapse all shields. Long story short, if I want to continue to compete against the merc gangs, I can't use that sniper anymore. No matter how much I'd like to always have it with me. A reminder. A reminder of the example I need to live up to. I've failed everyone else in my life.

I can't fail him. I won't.

"Archangel?" my comms lit up.

"Sidonis? Where've you been? You dropped off the grid for a while. We've been looking for you," I answered.

"Yeah… I… had something I had to take care of. Something from before," he answered, a bit awkwardly. I chalked it up as something uncomfortable. Can't blame him for that. Everyone on the team has something like that. "But I'm back now, and I got a lead on something. Meet up?"

"Sure. Send me the coordinates."

 **Tali' Zorah**

The alarm on my Omni-tool woke me up. Same time today as every day for the past few months. Wordlessly, I stood from my small, single mattress and to the almost adjacent cupboard to grab a bottle of sterilized water, drinking it quickly, as no Quarian can afford sluggishness. Once the bottle was empty, I set it down to be cleaned, and reused, and grabbed a tube of nutrient paste. Eating it quickly. I checked my Omni-tool to see what task I'd be performing on the Neema today. Will I be fixing yet another piece of broken machinery or piping? Will I simply be moving supplies on the fleet? I don't get messages from old friends anymore. I don't reach out to them like I used to. I don't engage with them like I used to. Since I returned, I haven't been very talkative. I just get myself absorbed in my work and nothing else. What else is there on the Migrant Fleet? That little voice spoke up again.

That little voice reminded me that once there was more. Kinship with those around me, friendships, there could still be joy to be found here. That voice was the old Tali. The new Tali, me, simply retorted by remembering the events of the Normandy. There was joy there too. Kinship. And then Shepard died, and we all split up, going our separate ways. Not even talking to one another anymore. That shows how much it was all worth, doesn't it?

Shepard…

Damn it, girl, don't start this again. Sulking won't benefit the fleet. The information I had given them had benefited the Fleet. Father and Xen were studying it almost endlessly. And Gerrel had taken my warnings of the Reapers to heart. There wasn't much we could do to prepare for them, but what we could, he wanted done.

You didn't give the data to the Fleet. Shepard gave the data to you freely. Because he was your friend. You didn't do this. Shepard did.

I sighed. I shook my head, shaking out those thoughts again. I looked at my Omni-tool again. First, was simply a general message that a new ship had been found to take the Idenna's original place. Great, more wonderful images and thoughts. One of our ships that had taken in three humans. A man, a woman, and a little girl. They were running from Cerberus, and temporary refuge had been granted. Cerberus infiltrated the fleet with an exile who sold some of our people to the Collectors, and began a massacre. Killing civilians and marines alike. They were stopped, before retrieving the girl they were after. The human woman returned to Alliance space, while the man and girl stayed. It was decided that they could be kept safe, and our people kept safe, if the Idenna became one of the few ships that depart the fleet to search uncharted regions of the Galaxy for a new home. The next message.

It seems I will neither be repairing something, or removing supplies today. At least, not yet. I was being summoned to a mission briefing. While primarily I was still an engineer, I had enlisted in the Migrant Fleet Marines as a combat engineer. And thanks to my service and experience aboard the Normandy, I was given a leadership role. On small operations, I lead a full team, on larger operations, I will lead a science team that accompanies the marines.

I've already had good men and women die under my command on seemingly suicidal missions that provide only minor benefit to our people. Perhaps this time it will be something worthwhile. Or maybe this time it'll be the one to kill me. I'm not sure I care between the two anymore.


	3. Lazarus

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Got a review that I think would be wise to answer for everyone. All the DLC will be included both in ME2 and 3. This includes Kasumi and Zaeed, so don't worry about that. Anyways, hope you enjoy the chapter!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

What… what the… ugh… my eyes… blinding light. And… voices? But muffled. Everything… everything hurts. Everything aches. It feels like my skin and bone is burning. Like someone splashed acid on my brain even. I made out some words, a man's voice, I think. Aware of his surroundings, he said? My lungs, they have air? Last thing I remember was desperately trying… trying to get air. I blew the air out, and tried to suck more in. It hurt, but I'm a soldier. I fight through pain. The voice, they think he's waking up. He? Do they mean me? It would have to be, right? Did they find and rescue my body in time? Get me to the Alliance? I turned my head to the side, straining. There was a woman. I expected to see someone dressed as a doctor, but this woman was clearly anything but. She had black hair that went down just past her shoulders and wore what I could only describe as a form fitting catsuit. Mostly white, but black on the shoulders, with some kind of logo I don't recognize on the chest. The neck of the top even went down to show just a bit of cleavage.

Everything surged with even more pain. A lot of it. Like my entire body was just on fire. My breathing quickened.

"Damn it, Wilson. He's not ready! Give him the sedative!" I started to groan, cry out in pain, but all that came out, as my ears started to work again, was some kind of gurgling noise. I tried to move my arms. It hurt even more than it was. And they were strapped down by something. Where am I? The woman got down to my face, looking right into my eyes.

"Shepard, lie still. Try to stay calm. You'll be under again soon, and the pain will be gone," she reassured. Where am I? Did the others make it? I need to know. I tried to ask.

"Don't try to speak. We can answer your questions when you've healed."

"Heart rates still climbing. Brain activity is off the charts."

"Another dose, now!" Where am I? Why do I hurt so much? This can't be a hospital. I looked to the side, the Woman was looking at a console. Something monitoring my vitals. My heart rate was soaring. And that only made me even more nervous. I got a glimpse of the room. This didn't look like a hospital. This looked like a lab. What… my vision started to get hazy, to fade. I felt a cool liquid enter my arm. The pain started to subside, I got woozy.

"Heart rates dropping. Stats-" the voices were muffled again. The woman stood over me again. Blue eyes, fair face…

"Where… Tali…" I croaked out. Everything went black.

My head hurt, my face burned, but only a bit. The same burning feeling scattered seemingly randomly across my body. But it was manageable pain. And I heard… an alarm? I struggled to open my eyes, as the light was near blinding again, but it started to subside as my eyes adjusted. I was wrapped in a cloth, no, a medical gown. I was on an operating table. I moved to run my hand across my face and found that I wasn't strapped down this time. My hand was… surprisingly smooth. Lacking the scars and roughness it had gathered over the years. But my face on the other hand, I felt new cuts and marks. Right at the burning sensations. I even felt my beard, trimmed, surprisingly.

"Wake up, Commander," a woman's voice spoke over an intercom. Wait, the voice of the woman from… from before. I heard gunfire. I shot right out of the bed, and felt… invigorated. Already I had glanced around and evaluated the room. A medical bay, with some lab equipment. Some consoles, some machinery. Only one door out, but with a viewing platform above. There was fire. "This facility is under attack. Your scars aren't healed, but I need you to get moving."

"Yeah, I'm up, I'm up," I spoke. "Where am I? Where do I need to go? Can I get a gun? And who are you?" I questioned. Agh, felt a pain in my side, but it went away quickly.

"There's a locker on the far side of the room. You'll find your armor, and a pistol. Call me Miranda."

"Yeah, I see it." The metal floor felt cool on my feet as I made my way to the locker. It was already unlocked. I opened it, and inside were undergarments, an under suit for the armor, and… huh.

"Looks like they made some changes to the armor since I was out. And is this a new model of pistol?" I questioned, speaking aloud, hoping the woman, Miranda, would hear me.

"All improvements. Get suited up as quick as you can." I bore no complaint as I shrugged off the medical gown and got dressed. The under suit felt as form fitting as ever, but despite whatever changes had been done to the N7 armor, it was still just as natural as ever to get the armor on. It felt lighter, much lighter, but I wasn't so blind as to not see how thick the armor was. Or to ignore the ballistic weaves lining the inside of the armor.

"No helmet?" I asked, not seeing one in the locker.

"Unfortunately not. Don't worry, your shields will still protect your head. Take the pistol, and find a thermal clip. It's empty," Miranda continued.

"Hold on, a thermal what now?"

"A thermal clip. We use those instead of heat sinks now. Allows us to make weapons significantly stronger, but a weapon can only fire so much before it requires a new clip."

"Oh. Well, will it still cool over time?"

"Not at a rate even remotely efficient."

"Seems damn stupid to me," I grumbled, taking hold of the pistol and inspecting it. The slot for what I presumed to be the thermal clip was in the handle, much like how old handguns would be loaded. It had two barrels, one on top of the other. I'd bet it just serves the same purpose as the double barrels on our Assault rifles. Just trying to distribute the heat more so that a barrel doesn't start melting. As for everything else, the weapon's safety, trigger, everything, was all more or less standard, in the same place the pistols I remember had theirs. Shouldn't be hard to learn or get used to. "So, what the hell do these clips look like?"

"Small red canisters. Cylindrical in shape. Now, I'll open the door for you. I'll try to stay with you, but I can't make any promises."

"Understood. Moving out," I answered. Rolling my shoulders back as I moved through the now open doors. Stretching as many muscles as I could, rocking my neck around. Feels good to move around now. The slight pains and burnings are going away, or, at least my body is ignoring them for the moment. Through the door, there was a body on the floor. A woman. And beside her, one of those thermal clips the woman on the intercom told me about. I picked it up, fiddled with it and the gun for a moment as I positioned it right for it to slide in and lock in place. Through the next door, in this small little… airlock? A barricade had been set up. Just a bench and some crates. I was about to mantle over when I heard the clanking of metal boots on a metal floor. Weapon out, I peeked the corner, seeing a humanoid mechanical figure. A security mech. Looks like the LOKI line of mechs. Not sure what changes have been made, let's just hope it's central processor is still in the head. The mech clearly saw me, and was starting to take aim, but I already pulled the trigger, and its head exploded into shrapnel. The kick of the pistol barely even registered for me. Damn, that's quite the change. I paused a moment to make sure.

There was a small ticking noise, and then the body of the mech self-destructed. Hardly much of an explosion, just enough to shred itself apart, scorch the floor, imbed shrapnel in the wall it was next to. I followed the only route available to me, up a staircase and into an observation room over the med-bay I was in. The door at the far end had its haptic interface glowing red. It was locked.

"Mechs on the other side of the door. Someone else is in the system, hacking those doors open. I'd keep it shut but you have to go that way," Miranda warned.

"Got it," I answered, sliding into cover, and taking aim with my pistol. The door opened with a cluster of mechs marching out. I shot the head of the one in the center, and let its self-destruct do the work for me. The mechs were using some sort of small submachine gun, judging by the bursts of gunfire passing over my head while I waited for it to detonate. And judging by the marks it was leaving on the wall opposite from them.

Not the most accurate of weapons, but fires rapidly enough that it doesn't need to be at this range. The mech detonated, and it caused a chain reaction with the others. This is child's play. I wonder what this saboteur has done to make these mechs cause so much damage? Separate non-combatants from security personnel? Separate individual guards from others? A coordinated defense, even from a surprise attack, should be able to make short work of LOKI mechs. As I passed through the doors those mechs came from, I got a better idea. There was a man and a woman running in the same direction as my goal in the adjacent hallway, which was perfectly visible to me through large, thick windows. But I saw something long before the pair could. A large, hulking mech of a model unfamiliar to me stomping out of a flaming room.

"Get back!" I shouted. I'm not sure if the glass was too thick, or if it was too late. But the mech opened fire, one of its arms a heavy machine gun, tearing the two to shreds. Splattering the glass with blood. At least the bullets weren't breaking the glass. I was left with no choice but to turn right. There were more bodies of non-combatants in pools of blood, all riddled with holes.

"More reinforcements heading your way, Shepard. There's a grenade launcher in the next room. Take it."

"Gladly," I remarked, stepping through the doors and seeing said launcher still in the grasp of a man's corpse. Apparently, rigor mortis had begun to set in, so I had to pry his fingers off. A door opened below, at the end of a hall, another group of mechs, LOKIs, pouring through. I could shoot one round to likely kill them all. Or I could shoot one explosive round to certainly kill them all, and have fun. It was an easy choice. I arched the launcher up, and fired, the weapon making a satisfying _thwump_ as it lobbed the grenade. It landed at the mech's feet, and exploded. Unfortunately, I realized too late that one of the canisters by the door contained something flammable, and now a jet of fire was raging from the canister. By the time I took an elevator down, the whole tank had not yet detonated.

"Go, Shepard. There are safeties to keep it from detonating fully," Miranda reassured. Eh fuck it. I stepped back, and started a sprint, going much faster than I anticipated. I went down into a slide early, the heat cooking my face as I realized that maybe I instead timed it just right. I still made it past the fire, and I got to my feet. "You're doing great. Head to-" Static interrupted her. "Meet you- Shepard? -ead me? I've got... closing in…"

"If you can hear me, comms are scrambled. Don't know where to meet," I tried to respond. I got nothing back. So, I simply stepped through the next unlocked door I saw. A hallway, with another unlocked door on the other side. The hallway was still open on my right, but let's try the door first. I opened it, and there was a LOKI mech on the floor. Still online, but without its weapon, and missing a leg. I fired into its chest to solve that without causing it to explode. There were X-rays and medical readouts on monitors surrounding the room. Terminals. I saw a terminal still online, a journal entry accessed. I decided to let it play.

"Progress is slow, but the subject shows signs of recovery. Major organs are again functional, and there are signs of rudimentary neurological activity." It was Miranda. "As expected, to accelerate the process we are moving from simple organic reconstruction of the subject to bio-synthetic fusion. Initial results show promise." The subject? That can't be me, can it? My O2 was running short. That's all. This is a bit extreme for that. Who, or what, else is here? I saw another terminal at the other side of the room. I let it play as well. This time, it was the man from that first time I woke up.

"The cost of this project is astronomical. Over four billion credits so far. Nobody seems to care we've gone over budget." I let out a whistle. That is indeed a lot of money. "I don't know where the boss gets all his money. Maybe it's better not to know. I just wish he'd kick a little more in my direction once in a while." The boss? And not knowing where he gets his money? This is the Alliance, isn't it? True, I don't recognize these logos, but it could well just be the logo of some new division. Thoughts for a different time. I left the room and ventured down the hallway, up a staircase. Damn alarm was still blaring.

"Shepard!" a man called out. I looked to the left to see the main in a smoky room. Before I could answer, he turned to one of those massive mechs turning a corner. He cried out, and I looked away before the mech turned him into paste. I stepped through the next door way to find a larger, more open room. By a significant amount. Not sure what its purpose would be. There was more shooting. I continued to enter a firefight between a survivor, and a few more mechs. The survivor, a dark-skinned man with a head nearly shaved, was clearly security personnel. It was in his stance, his armor, if relatively light. He took down one mech, and then, with a wave of his hand, and a blue aura around him, another mech went airborne, spinning and floating slowly towards us. The biotic field dissipated as soon as it went over the railing, causing it to fall down, not sure how far yet, but I'd assume far enough. One mech remained, so I put a round right through its head. The man turned, saw me, and eyes went wide.

"Shepard?! What the hell?" the door across opened again, more mechs coming through. His attention immediately returned to the mechs. There were only three, so two got bullets, and the third went up and over. No more mechs followed. He stood, looking back at me. "What are you doing here? I thought you were still a work in progress."

"Work in progress? I just woke up. Betting you know more than me."

"Right, right. Sorry. Name's Jacob Taylor. I'm chief of security here and Miranda Lawson's top lieutenant. Served five years in the alliance before this."

"Miranda? She was talking to me over the radio when I woke up. Lost contact just before running into you."

"She's still alive, thought so. She's the head of this facility, led the Lazarus team. It was her job to bring you back to life. No matter what."

"Sheesh. How bad was it? And how long?"

"Shepard, your body wasn't recovered before it entered atmo, before it hit the surface. I'm no doctor, but when I first saw you? Meat and tubes. Nothing but," Jacob explained hesitantly. I felt uneasy. I took a step to the side and steadied myself.

"How… how the fuck am I here, then? And how damn long was I… shit," I muttered.

"Project Lazarus is cutting edge tech. You want details, ask Miranda when we're out of here. As for how long? Over two years."

"Two fucking years? You're fucking shitting me," I exclaimed.

"Sorry, Shepard," Jacob shrugged. "That's the truth. For what it's worth, I know for sure you're not a clone. They wanted your mind back exactly as you were. Your body's the same, but enhanced. Extra bits."

"My crew. Tell me about my crew," I pleaded.

"Nearly everyone got out. The entirety of the ground team, the pilot, the doctor, chief engineer, even that chef you hired. A few servicemen and women didn't make it, unfortunately. As well as navigator Pressly."

"Damn, leaving me torn between relief and mourning here," I muttered.

"I know what you mean. I-"

"Check, check. Anyone on this frequency? Anybody still alive out there? Hello?" A man's voice questioned. Given Jacob's Omni-tool lit up, it was coming from his, on speaker. I hadn't even taken the time to mess with my own Omni-tool yet, assuming one was even in this armor. Which, I'd be surprised if not. Wait, I recognized that voice. Jacob put a finger to his ear.

"Wilson? It's Jacob. I'm here with Commander Shepard. Just took out some mechs over in D wing."

"He's alive?! How the hell-never mind. Get him out of there. Go to the service tunnels and head for the network control room," Wilson stated.

"Roger that. Stay on this frequency," Jacob responded.

"I recognize his voice. And I think Miranda said his name, checking on me one time when I woke up," I remarked.

"That's him alright. Chief of medical tech. Answers directly to Miranda," Jacob nodded. "Now, let's get moving."

"Lead the way." I followed the man through the next set of doors and into a hallway, spotting another clip on the ground along the way. I grabbed it, wondering how long it would take me to get used to this. Well, at least during an op I'm actually prepared for, I'd be stacked with these clips. Hopefully won't need to scavenge every clip I see. We entered the service tunnels, finding and neutralizing two mechs. My shields took part of a burst from one, but they held.

"Damn it, Wilson? Encountering mechs along the way. Can you find us a route that avoids them?" Jacob questioned.

"The station's crawling with them! The most I can do is try and give you a route with the least amount!" he responded.

"Well at least warn us if we're about to meet some," Jacob ordered, allowing some annoyance to creep through.

"Right, sorry. Ah shit, they've found me! Help! I'm in server room B!"

"Damn it, come on, need to hurry." Jacob and I began moving faster. Not breaking out into a sprint, but much faster than a careful approach. We got out of the service tunnels, down a hallway, up a staircase.

"Fuck! I'm hit! Aggh!" Through another door, we found him on the ground behind some crates, clutching a wound. Two mechs at the far side of the room getting closer. We took them out easily. "Jacob! Down here!"

"I got you," Jacob reassured, and applied some Medi-gel to the wound. Wilson breathed a sigh of relief and calmed as the painkillers in the gel did their work, as well as closing the wound. There were three other corpses on the ground. Jacob helped the man stand.

"I thought I could shut down the mechs, but whoever did this fried the whole system. Irreversible," Wilson murmured.

"Why do you even have security mech clearance? You were in the bio wing," Jacob questioned, brows furrowing.

"I came here to try and fix this! And I got shot for it! How else could you explain that?!" Wilson shouted back. Two ways I could chalk this up. Traitor, or just the normal response of a civvie who never thought they'd be in the middle of something like this.

"Is the middle of a station swarmed by mechs the best place for this?" I remarked. Jacob's features settled, and Wilson seemed to take another breath.

"You're right. Just need to find Miranda, can't leave her behind."

"Forget about her, she was over in D wing. Mechs were all over that sector. No way she survived," Wilson stated. Could just be nerves.

"A bunch of mechs won't drop her, she's alive," Jacob retorted, brows furrowed again.

"She was leading me along just before I met Jacob," I pointed out.

"Well that doesn't change facts. We're here, she's not. We need to save ourselves." As they had their little discussion, I let my eyes wander. On Wilson's shirt, mostly white with some grey, he had a logo on his shoulder. It was a hexagon, but longer than it was wide, vertically aligned, and along the bottom half, were a pair of lines against that of the hexagon, it went below, and a bit further than that hexagon, almost looking like it had fangs, for lack of a better word. It was the same logo on Miranda's uniform, and that logo was also on the chest, just over the heart, of Jacob's uniform. Why had I never seen it before?

"The shuttle bay is only a few rooms away," Wilson insisted.

"And so is D wing," Jacob crossed his arms over his chest. "We can-" the door at the far room opened, and three mechs marched in. Already firing. Wilson hit the deck faster than they could begin firing, while Jacob and I took a knee behind the crates. I noticed that by the door, was a large canister, clearly marked with an explosive warning. Fuel canisters of some sort. I fired a pair of rounds at it, just to be safe, and it exploded, destroying the mechs. It was then I noticed the display on my pistol. I had less than half the thermal clip left.

"Hey Jacob, anyway I can add more of a clip, but keep what's still unused?"

"Hm? Oh, right, course. The way these clips are made, they're segmented. Each shot goes into so many segments, not a bit of another segment. Want to put in a new clip early, just go ahead and pop it out. It ejects used parts out of the slot on the side, see?" he pointed it out to me. "Used parts of the clip are ejected right away. Just stick the new clip as far as you can, it'll lock, then just slide what's still outside to the side. It'll segment right off, and you can store it," Jacob even demonstrated with his own.

"Got it, thanks."

"No problem, but I can tell things are a bit tense. If I tell you who we work for, will you trust me?" I raised a brow.

"Started getting the idea this wasn't exactly the Alliance a bit before I got around to you. Held out some hope, but, too much I guess." I crossed my arms over my chest. Eying the man. And Wilson.

"This really isn't the time, Jacob," Wilson murmured, nervously.

"We won't make it if he's expecting a shot in the back," Jacob retorted. That's further than I was suspicious of. If that's the length he goes to, who are these guys then?

"You want to piss off the boss? Fine, your ass then," Wilson took a step back. Jacob turned back.

"The Lazarus project. The program that rebuilt you? It's funded and controlled by a group called Cerberus."

Fucking. _**What?!**_ My right hand flew right into Jacob's cheek while my left grabbed my pistol, shot Wilson in the foot. My right hand grabbed Jacob by the neck, lifted him up, allowing my left to grab him tight by the neck as my pistol was holstered. I lifted him up, pinning him against the wall. Wilson was crying out in pain and cursing. Jacob sputtered, and his hands went to mine, trying to give his throat some respite. How the hell was I doing this? Lifting a man up by his throat single handedly? Doing… all of this so fast even I could barely register it? This wasn't normal.

"What the fuck have you done to me?! What the fuck does Cerberus want with me?!" I shouted. I was absolutely livid.

"My toe! You shot my fucking toe off!" Wilson shouted. With my right I drew my pistol again and shot near the floor beside him.

"Did I fucking say you could speak, you Cerberus scumbag?" I looked back to Jacob. "Answer me, right fucking now, or the next bullet won't be at your friend, but right into your fucking skull." He tried to speak, sputtering, grunting more. Guess I was holding too tight. I loosened my grip. Just by a little bit. He took a few deep breaths.

"I-I only know two things," he coughed. "You're Humanity's best, and the Reapers. Want you to help stop them."

"I left my warnings. The Alliance knew. Anderson knew, the Council knew," I growled. "Why was I needed?"

"They've forgotten. Ignored the warnings. All I know. Illusive Man will explain everything. I promise." I held him against the wall a moment longer.

"Who's the Illusive Man?"

"Head of Cerberus. Poured almost endless resources into this." Damn it. The fucking Reapers. And if he's telling the truth? Nothing's being done to prepare? Goddamnit, guess I need to fix that. And, hell. If I get to meet the Illusive Man? Well, guess I've got a bullet with his name on it. Or I can just strangle him. Then I'll shoot my way out, or die in the process. If I get out, get back to the Alliance, get the crew back together, get word back out about the Reapers, hunt Cerberus down. I dropped Jacob to the ground, he fell to his knees, clutching his neck, coughing. I squatted down, nudging the barrel of my pistol against his head.

"Here's what's going to happen. You're going to give your friend some more Medi-gel. We'll continue along to the shuttle bay, but both of you will be in front of me at all times. When we get to the shuttle bay, we will then leave, with or without Miranda. You will take me to your boss. And if any of you make one wrong move, I will shoot you both, leave here on my own, and head straight back to the Alliance. Got it?"

"Yeah. Got it," he coughed. "Think… think later you can tell me just what the hell happened for that kind of reaction?" I scoffed.

"You expect me to believe you don't know anything about the atrocities your little group has committed? Get on with it," I growled.

Slowly, Jacob stood and got over to Wilson. Applying more Medi-gel, and taking the disconnected toe out from Wilson's boot, putting it in Wilson's pocket. Thinking it might be able to be reattached, I suppose. I didn't miss the terrified glances he kept shooting my way. As ordered, the two walked in front of me, and I kept my pistol out and ready, watching for the slightest move I didn't like. In an adjacent hallway, there were more bodies. Now, I wasn't pitying them. It almost brought a sadistic smile to my face. That many less scumbags in the universe. We kept moving until we got a door, that, according to the others, had mechs on the other side. The gunfire that came through the door, pock marking the wall with bullets is what confirmed it for me though. Jacob got two shots off, before taking cover.

"Uh… can we get some help?" he asked nervously.

"That depends. Is their cover you can take a bit further in?"

"Shepard, really?" Wilson exclaimed, nervous.

"Jacob's a biotic. He can give you two a barrier to move up, and I'll shoot mechs from back here, behind you. You know, I'm actually glad you told me about who you work for, Jacob. Now I don't have to worry about keeping either of you safe. I value your existences less than those of the mechs shooting at us! Ain't that just swell?" I remarked casually, eying my pistol, and then them. I think Wilson was about to piss himself. Jacob was starting to show some nerves himself. He peeked the corner and shot two more rounds

"Wilson, on three." He counted down, and on three, Jacob glowed with biotics and the two sprinted forward. I then casually took position behind the wall. Two mechs were left. On an upper catwalk. I fired two shots off, and two mechs went down.

"Move along, little shitbags. Move along," I urged, stepping out from the corner. I saw a route to the left that would take me towards the end of this room, the shuttle bay, I noticed. The catwalk lead somewhere to the left, and the right. "Which way are we going?"

"Up there to the right," Jacob answered. "Then I'll head up to the left over there, you two can go up along the right then, in case any mechs are over there," I ordered casually. The two glanced amongst each other. But they moved, and I did too. I checked my corner by the door to be safe. Two mechs inside, dormant for the moment. I took them both down before they fired at me. Rounds impacted my shields from behind. Seems there were also more mechs in the area between where the scumbags and myself are, they were just folded up for a moment. I took them both down too, while Jacob got to work on a small group that just came through the door I assume we were going for. I counted five. Jacob shot one in the head, and its detonation took out two more. I shot another in the head, impressive for this distance, but perhaps aided by these enhancements, and that explosion took out the other. We moved along to the door, still keeping my distance.

"Door's locked down, I'll try to open it," Wilson grunted. He opened his Omni-tool, and immediately it opened. That Miranda woman was on the other side. She locked eyes with Wilson, and grimaced. "Miranda! But you were-" he got to say no more. She had apparently drawn her own pistol, placed it against him, and fired. He gasped, and fell to the floor. She fired a pair of rounds into his head.

"Dead?" she asked the corpse bitterly.

"What the hell, Miranda?" Jacob exclaimed.

"Killing each other huh? Doing my job for me. Splendid," I remarked, arms crossed over my chest. Miranda eyed me with a brow raised, no doubt wondering, suspecting, perhaps, why I said that.

"I'm doing my job, Jacob. Wilson betrayed us all. Seems the Shadow Broker paid him off. He caused this," Miranda explained coldly.

"The broker, huh? Assume that has something to do with me."

"When we were attempting to recover your body, The Broker proved an obstacle. We had to retrieve you from them."

"Great. Then let me tell you exactly what's going to happen." I began.

"I already know what's going to happen. We-"

"Word of advice. Don't interrupt me. I know who you work for," I sneered. Miranda frowned at Jacob.

"I see someone's conscience got in the way again."

"Lying to him is no way to get him to join our cause," Jacob retorted.

" _Nothing,_ will ever make me join your cause. Now, shut up. You can get marriage counselling later, if I decide to let you live. We're going in that shuttle, and reluctantly, I will allow you to take me to your boss to see just what he wanted me back for. We'll go from there. I will remain facing the cockpit from the back of the shuttle, pistol ready. Any wrong moves, and I shoot you both."

"Good enough for me." Miranda glared back. The three of us stood there, no one moving. "Well? Are you coming or what?"

"By all means, you first," I gestured towards the shuttle with my pistol. She sighed and muttered under her breath. We entered the shuttle, I took a seat near the back, Jacob by the cockpit. Miranda passed through the door into the cockpit. And I watched. Keeping focused.

An hour or so later, Miranda entered the compartment, and took a seat by Jacob. I've been struggling not to let my mind wander.

"Before you meet with the Illusive Man, we need to ask a few questions to evaluate your condition," Miranda began.

"Fucking pissed. How's that for my condition?" I glared.

"He took down those mechs without any trouble, and his memory is clearly intact. What else do you need," Jacob asked.

"It's been two years and twelve days. He knows Shepard isn't exactly happy, and yet, he still wanted questions. Verify that both his personality and memories are intact. I'm going to ask," Miranda retorted. She raised a brow towards me.

"Ask, I'll be sure to make the answers quite colorful."

"Tell us about your childhood. Just the generics, what anyone would read in your service record or news report."

"Born on Earth, April 11th, 2154. Hannah and Adam Shepard. Alliance family. Spent most of my childhood on Arcturus."

"And what of your service before becoming an N7?" Miranda questioned.

"Glad you asked. Now I can list off some of my grievances with you bastards. First, it was Akuze. Lone survivor of my unit. Or, so I thought."

"Wait, wait, wait. Other's survived?" Jacob asked, eyes wide.

"Two others survived the thresher maws. But only one of them survived you. While I was running around, chasing down Saren, Hackett gave me a tidbit of scientists turning up dead, all with a history of some project on Akuze right around that time. Went to go find the last, and find a bunch of mercs where that Scientist was. Lo and behold, who do I find pointing a gun to the head of the scientist? Corporal Toombs, my second. He told me everything. What you did to him. Injecting him with Thresher Maw acid, for starters. Yeah, I know all about how you bastards lured us down here, killed most of my men, tortured one to death in sick experiments, and nearly killed another," I growled.

"What the fuck…" Jacob murmured. "Miranda, did you know?"

"First I've heard of this. I suspect Toombs to be mistaken as to who's responsible."

"Oh yeah? Well, how about the fact that on Edolus, I did a favor for Rear Admiral Kahoku. His men had gone mission on that planet. I investigated, and a Thresher Maw had wiped out his unit, just like mine. His men lured by a distress beacon. Just like mine. Kahoku followed up on this, and sent me a message while he was on the run from Cerberus. You were responsible for that too. Followed coordinates in his message, and damn, what I found… Cerberus experimenting on Rachni and Thorian creepers. And Kahoku dead by some sort of injection. And don't you dare say we're mistaken. We found plenty of Cerberus files there, and elsewhere.

I couldn't help but notice Jacob leaning back in his seat, thinking. Miranda still seemed skeptical.

"Where did you go after Akuze?"

"Elysium, with my father. Psychological leave ordered by Anderson. Helped fight back the pirates and slavers. My dad gave his life for mine. You ask me, if not for Akuze, my dad wouldn't have been there. He'd be alive too."

"Satisfied, Miranda?" Jacob asked, quietly.

"Almost. Two more questions. Virmire. Which of your squad mates was left behind?"

"Left behind? Really? That's how you're phrasing that?" I glared. "Williams gave her life. I saved as many lives as I could that day. And, fair warning. My trigger finger is feeling really itchy right now."

"Seriously, Miranda. Drop it. He's clearly the same man he was," Jacob urged.

"Listen to your toadie."

"The last question couldn't possibly irritate you, Commander. It's simply asking who you recommended to take Humanity's seat on the Council."

"Anderson. How's he doing? I still remember him taking the seat."

"He's doing well. The public and Alliance military like what he's doing, even if the politicians grumble a bit. Though he seems to prefer military life," Jacob remarked.

"Your memory is clearly solid, and I can accept from the station that your skills are sharp, if perhaps, a bit rusty as you get used to the new technology. I'd test for personality, but I believe that requires an environment we simply cannot reach."

"Goddamn right about that."

"Then I'll return to the cockpit. But before I do, your Omni-tool is top of the line. Feel free to calibrate it as you wish. In addition, it is fully loaded with combat programs for someone of your skills. If you check your belt, left side, you will find a small metal disc. That's a combat drone. Finally, would you please reveal your hand and touch the shuttle wall?" Miranda asked.

"The hell would I need to do that for?"

"To test one of the cybernetics. I haven't gotten the chance to verify it works, not while you're conscious." I simply stared, suspicious. "Commander, don't fear, it's not anything that can control you. The Illusive Man was adamant that no such devices be installed. He is well aware it would only make you that much more uncooperative. And result in suicide. Please, reveal your hand." I waited another moment, but relented. Undoing the clasps and pulling off the gauntlet on my right hand, then removing the glove over the hand. Everything about my hand seemed normal. I touched the wall, and felt an electric jolt. Much like a shock, but stronger than most I've ever experienced. Not as strong as, say, being hit with an overload, but more than just natural. My hand shot back, and I muttered a slight curse."

"Static discharge. Good, that means it's operational. We can arrange for training later."

"Training? Training for what?"

"The Illusive Man wanted you to be stronger and more capable, but at the same time, to keep you, in and of yourself, completely unchanged. For this specific part of the goal, we were unwilling to do anything with your brain beyond biological restoration. But this was a benefit to not simply be tossed aside. The inside of your skull now houses a piece of experimental technology, You're the first artificial biotic." I leaned forward. Very curious.

"Tell me everything."

 **Commander John Shepard**

It had proved a very interesting conversation. The device more or less lined the entirety of the inside of my skull, but was designed to be completely smooth, and even padded, should any impacts knock my brain around in there. Shock absorbers and what-not. It shielded me from the Eezo radiation, but also allowed my brains electric impulses to influence the Eezo, and generate biotic fields. Though I'd need training to do so properly. My metabolism wouldn't increase just yet, as my body wasn't yet using up that extra energy biotics require, but I of course had a top of the line biotic amp installed as well. I had been made stronger thanks to synthetic fibers in my muscles, as well as in my bones, to increase their density and protect them from breaking. My spine had almost been entirely covered by shock absorbent, ballistic protection and even some metal to protect it from being severed by knife or bullet. My reaction times had been sped up, and my eyesight improved. I could see a little bit farther and a little bit clearer. Not sure how much help that would be. My lungs were partially synthetic, making them more efficient, and even able to store a certain amount of oxygen, like a built in O2 tank. My liver had been improved to better combat toxins, namely poisons that could be deliberately put into my system. All but the most advanced and deadliest ones wouldn't put me down for good. Even then, I could still have enough time to get medical help. Could. Finally, some immune system enhancements. Nothing that special, but it should help keep me well and on my feet.

I couldn't sneak a peek just yet, but I couldn't help but wonder… and hey, it's a completely natural thing to wonder.

Did they make my dick a bit bigger? I couldn't tell. Not without taking a hand or looking at it. But it ain't easy to tell when it's flaccid. Anyways, moving on.

We had arrived at the Cerberus facility a few hours later, like Miranda said. I was getting tired, but like hell was I going to shut my eyes for a nap anytime soon. Miranda got us landed, and led Jacob and I up to a kind of… antechamber? Not far from the shuttle, but had plenty of seats and a console Miranda went straight towards. There was a window looking into a small workspace with three Cerberus members working at other consoles. They kept glancing at me. Think I saw some wonder.

"The Illusive Man is ready to see you, Commander. Follow that door and down the stairs," Miranda pointed. Alright, let's get this over with.

I went through the doors, and patted the pistol at my thigh. Oh, I am going to enjoy this. The hall was barren, with a lone door at the end. The door opened to a dark room, a circle in the floor with a partial blue circle, lit by its own lights along the rim. I slowly stepped inside, and the center of the circle. A scanner activated. Vid screens surrounding the room activated. I saw myself standing in a large, empty chamber. A lone man, dressed in a black suit, sitting on a chair cross legged. His skin was light, hair dark, and he had a cigarette in his hand. This room had only a black reflective floor, and no visible ceiling. It's possible it's just that the ceiling can act as a viewscreen itself, and is showing what one would see without the ceiling. Stars and stars and stars. And behind the man in the chair, a large star. Along the rim it was more blue in color, while the closer to the center one got, more red. But only half of the star was visible. Either the man resides on a space station orbiting this star, or he simply has the display's surrounding the room show this. Either way, my hopes of putting an end to Cerberus' leader were dashed. At least for today. The man took a drag of his cigarette.

"Commander Shepard," he greeted coolly as he breathed out the smoke.

"You must be the Illusive Man. Shame, I was hoping to use this little fella…" I took the pistol out and eyed it.

"I'm no fool, Shepard. I know what you think of my organization, and I know you'd never believe me that those were rogue elements that you encountered before."

"We both would know that would be a bold-faced lie," I sneered. "You may be the reason I'm alive today, but don't think for a second that means I owe you."

"Commander, this is bigger than Cerberus, you, me, and all of the hatred you feel towards my organization. Humanity is up against the greatest threat of our brief existence," he got to the point.

"The Reapers."

"Good to see your memory is still intact. How are you feeling?" he put out his cigarette, trying to be casual.

"You don't have the right to ask those questions. Get to the point."

"We aren't as evil as you believe, Commander. You and I are on the same side, if our methods differ."

"Get. To. The. Fucking. Point." He sighed, and stood from his chair.

"We're at war. No one wants to admit it, but humanity is under attack." He walked closer. "While you've been sleeping, entire colonies have been disappearing. All of them human. We believe it's an agent of the Reapers. Just as Saren and the Geth aided Sovereign." He was practically standing in front of me now, and it was then I noticed something. In his eyes. There was a blue pattern in each, some sort of cybernetic. I wonder what it allows him to see. It's unlike any I've seen before. "You've seen it yourself, bested all of them. One of the reasons we chose you."

"Why did you choose me? Could have trained a whole army for what you spent on me."

"Because you're unique, Commander. Not just in ability or experience, but what you represent. You stood for Humanity at a key moment. Every human alive knows your name. You're a symbol. You can be a rallying cry. I don't know if the Reapers understand fear, but one is destroyed because of your actions. They have to respect that."

"Hm. Why is Cerberus even involved? Got tired of running experiments on humans that would make Josef Mengele proud?" He ignored the jibe.

"We're committed to the advancement and preservation of Humanity. If the Reapers are targeting us, trying to wipe us out, then Cerberus will work to stop them. If we wait for Politicians or the Alliance to act, no more Human colonies will be left."

"You expect me to believe the Alliance is ignoring this?"

"They're spread thin, Commander. There were substantial losses against Sovereign, and there are the ships that must be dedicated to the Citadel Defense Fleet. And Alliance space has only been expanding more and more since you've been asleep. They have more and more ground to cover. Rebuilding efforts are still a forefront for Military shipyards, and Anderson is still, seemingly successfully, pushing for expansion of our fleets. But that still takes time. Simply blaming the abductions on mercs and pirates is both easier and convenient."

"And what kind of numbers are we looking at that makes mercs and pirates so unlikely?" He had lit another cigarette and took a drag of it.

"Hundreds of thousands of colonists. The Reapers want to harvest all life? This sounds like the definition of harvesting. No one pays any attention to it because it's random and only in remote locations. And I can only guess as to why Humanity is their target here. You killing one."

"Hundreds of thousands…" Damn it. That's not a number I can ignore either. He's right. I hate to admit it, but it sure as hell seems like he's right. The Reapers are making another play. Whatever the hell it might be.

"Say… say I believe you. Say that it's true, the Reapers being responsible. Well, I certainly want to put a stop to it." he nodded.

"I'd be disappointed if you accepted any of this fully without seeing for yourself. So, I have an offer. The shuttle you flew in on has been refueled and there are weapons waiting for you. If you accept, it will take you to Freedom's Progress. The latest Colony to be abducted. It only just happened, and the Alliance has yet to arrive. You leave now, you'll beat them before any evidence can be lost or destroyed. Miranda and Jacob will brief you further." He returned to his seat.

"And why should I trust them?"

"Miranda saved your life in more ways than one. She spent two years of her life on you. She's not about to let that go to waste by putting a knife in your back, or letting a stray bullet find your head. As for Jacob, he's a soldier and never fully trusted me or my organization, and has always been honest about that." Hm. Maybe that also means that Jacob hasn't exactly been privy to many details about the organization's doings. I just tallied his reactions in the shuttle as an act. I won't make friends with him, but I won't be as hostile either. "For what it's worth they've both been ordered to follow your orders for the duration of the investigation on Freedom's progress, if you agree."

"And if I don't?"

"You'll always have a choice, Shepard. While I'd much prefer you agree to Freedom's Progress, if not, the shuttle will bring you to an Alliance port, and we part ways. If you go and find no evidence, we can still part ways. Whether or not you work with us, Shepard, you are more valuable to Humanity, and thus Cerberus, alive than dead."

"Forgive me if I still feel skeptical," I muttered. He just took another drag of his cigarette. "Fuck… Fine, I'll go to Freedom's Progress."

"Then good luck, Commander."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys! Just want to talk about the artificial biotic thing real quick. It's something that I think will be interesting to try. And don't worry, Shep ain't about to become an OP biotic god or any of that shit. He wasn't born biotic like all the others, so that means he has no experience of trying to use and mess with it as a child. This is like learning a foreign language in your thirties compared to learning a language from birth. Except scaled up by like ten degrees minimum. Got plans for him learning to do even the simplest of shit. Anyways, see y'all in the next one!**


	4. Chance Meeting

**Tali' Zorah**

Well, this is certainly the most interesting mission I've taken for the Fleet. A pilgrim, Veetor, was on pilgrimage to an Alliance Colony, Freedom's progress. Lately it seems Human territory is becoming a bit more popular for our pilgrims. They tend to treat us better than the other species. Relatively, at least. As for Veetor himself, he's mentally challenged, which is why a remote, quiet colony was his choice. Nervous, prone to breakdowns. The mission was to find and retrieve him, as the Colony had gone dark. We landed just minutes ago. No one answered our hails. Not a soul was in sight. We'll need to sweep the colony. At least we should have plenty of-

"Tali, there's a shuttle inbound. No IFF. Lana's trying to get a visual, but we should get ready for a fight," Prazza, the highest ranking of the Marines here, informed. Still, he was outranked by me.

"It may be Alliance, if that's the case, we should hail them. We could help one another," I countered. Prazza wasn't fond of that order. He was a hothead. Didn't trust any non-Quarians, and he clearly didn't like me. It made it difficult to keep control at times.

"Tali, it's a Cerberus shuttle. I see the Bosh 'Tet's symbol," Lana informed through comms. I couldn't help but feel some anger myself.

"Still, I'd rather avoid them if possible. We may be outnumbered for all we know. Don't let them know we're here, get Veetor, and just leave," I ordered.

"You can't possibly think of just letting those bastards be?!" Prazza exclaimed.

"If we find we outnumber them and can surprise them, I'll reconsider. What I don't want is for our small scouting party to get in a fight with Commandos in heavy armor," I retorted. Just let me handle it. Now, get in formation. Begin our sweep."

* * *

 **Commander Shepard**

Obviously, I didn't spend the flight chatting either Jacob or Miranda up. I didn't trust either of them. Miranda was all business, cold. And Jacob? Even if he doesn't know all Cerberus has done, he's still with them. There has to be some things he knows and has overlooked. In the shuttle, I got my helmet and my new weapons, he did explain those to me. The helmet matched my armor, another N7, but Jacob showed me a little new feature on it. The helmet, normally, doesn't have a faceplate. It covers the head with a visor over the eyes. Press a button on the side of the helmet however, and a metal plate extends up and seals the helmet. Fully.

The assault rifle I was given was an M-8 Avenger. It opened at the top to reveal the slot for the thermal clip. Slap it in, close it up, fire. I still had the pistol from before, which he said was called the M-3 Predator. The sniper, the M-92 Mantis, is a heavy hitter but can only fire once before needing a new clip. That slot is in the side. Finally, a shotgun. The M-23 Katana. With a slot also in the side.

The facility I had been brought to must not have been that far from Freedom's Progress. So, it's either out in the Terminus systems or the Traverse. Within a few hours, Miranda left the cockpit and entered the crew hold.

"We should be arriving soon, Commander. Do you have any orders?"

"Look for survivors. Number one priority every time."

"That's unlikely, Commander. No one was left at the other colonies. Completely deserted," Miranda reminded.

"I know, and I don't care. It's always a possibility, and I won't just leave any potential survivors behind. Beyond that, try to find some sort of security center. Anywhere that might have captured recordings If it turns out we're not the first ones here, live and let live. Course, they shoot us, shoot back."

"Sounds like a plan, Commander," Jacob nodded. I couldn't help but raise a brow at the fact that Miranda was just wearing the same catsuit as before. It's not the kind of thing one should wear when going into a firefight. But, maybe there won't be one at all. I'll ignore it for now. Besides, I can't claim to care if she gets shot. Jacob though was wearing armor. Looked lighter and not as strong as my own, but it was armor. Still had the damn Cerberus logo, however.

The shuttle touched down and the doors opened. It was night, and it seems the Colony had been built into a kind of quarry. Well, least a quarry they stopped mining in. Large rock walls, obviously carved out, artificially raised up all around, with the wide sections cut out housing prefab buildings. It also seemed to be snowing, just slightly. Flakes gently floating down. I felt some of the cool air against my mouth. I debated just sealing my helmet. We'll see. Seems the colony still had power, external flood lights were all still on, and lights inside of the prefabs as well. Though some were flickering. Just to be ready, I took my rifle out, though I wasn't expecting to use it. We entered the nearest prefab, a dining area. Trays of food, with the food still on them, partially eaten, remained on the tables. No sign of any colonists. We exited, and were overlooking some natural body of water flowing… underneath the quarry? Hard to tell.

"No bodies, no structural damage, no sign of any conflict," Miranda observed. We had just entered a slightly larger courtyard than the one we landed in. There were still mechanical parts sorted in piles. Crates, other supplies.

We passed through a door in one of the rock faces, large enough that a sizeable land vehicle could pass through. It opened and in a prefab just across another gap were two LOKI mechs. They turned, and opened fire. The nearest cover for me was some concrete barriers just ahead, so I kept my head down, ran, and dived into the corner it provided. Protected me from ahead, and the right. Miranda put down one mech as I got to a knee, and a burst from my rifle put down the other.

"I hear FENRIS mechs," Jacob called out.

"FENRIS?" I asked.

"Robot attack dogs. Charge up, taze you. Gets right through the shields and takes their targets down," Jacob answered. Firing as one such mech turned a corner. Hm, named after the Great Wolf in Norse Mythology? Name always seems to change with Fenris or Fenrir. Back to the task at hand, the FENRIS mechs, two of them, were also accompanied by another pair of LOKIs. Which we easily put down. The Fenris mechs had a quadruped body, and their head was large and round with two red eyes vertically aligned, just like the LOKIs.

"Strange, security systems on the other colonies had all been offline," Miranda murmured.

"And why were they hostile? They should have identified us as human," Jacob added.

"Someone must have reprogrammed them to attack on sight. Seems there is a survivor," Miranda mused.

"They're probably scared shitless then. Had no idea what attacked, so told them to attack everything," I suggested. "Move on." Our only route was to go where the mechs came from. Up into another prefab. This one, public living quarters. Again, not a soul in sight. The vidscreen had even been left on. But it only had a loss of signal message to play. "Are the comm buoys in this system still intact?" I asked.

"They are. Must have disabled the colony's own comm relay," Miranda answered. Outside of this prefab was an outdoor dining area, a picnic table essentially. It too, still had food and trays and drinks left unfinished. We had nowhere else to go except the next building. I opened the door and… Quarians?

A group of them, males and females, all with a variety of colors on the cloth wrapped around their suits were hunched over a holo display. Others were standing with weapons ready, talking or just watching. The prefab went around to the side, so there may be more we couldn't see. Hearing the door open, the Quarians shot up and readied their weapons. Jacob and Miranda started to put their own up, but I immediately slapped their weapons down.

"Stop right there!" A male almost growled, rifle aimed right at us. A female Quarian ran up, a purple hood with a swirling pattern.

"Prazza! You said you'd let me handle this!" That voice… holy fucking shit. She lowered Prazza's weapon, her back turned to me for just a moment.

I immediately tore my helmet off, and I just couldn't stop beaming. One of her three fingered hands pointed out to us, signaling to stop. And then, her glowing eyes locked with mine, gazing over my features.

"S… Shepard?"

I wrapped her in a bear hug, laughing, as she cried out in surprise. I couldn't help myself.

"Put her down, Cerberus scum!" That made me return to reality. I let her go, still smiling.

"Put those weapons down! Now!" Tali shouted, ordering them. She slapped Prazza's own rifle down. She turned back to me, and then, well, slapped me too. Stung a little. She's grown up a lot.

"Yeah, I uh, probably should have explained first, sorry," I managed a chuckle.

"Should have? I thought you were _dead!_ Everyone thought that! I listened to you suffocate for Ancestors sake! And Cerberus?! The Shepard I know would have shot any of them on sight!"

"Ok, ok, ok. Hold on. First, I'll prove it's me. Then, I'll explain, that sound alright?" She crossed her arms over her chest. I noticed some of the Quarians were glancing amongst each other. "Alright, first, how about after getting that Geth data from the Armstrong nebula? I called you up to my quarters, so we could shift through it. When you found out it detailed the evolution of the Geth, you freaked out in excitement. Then just like that, you started wringing your hands as you began to ask for a copy. Before of course blurting that request out faster than I could register. I laughed, calmed you down, told you I expected the request, and didn't even hesitate with giving you a copy. You hugged me just as hard as I did just now," I chuckled again. "And if that's not enough, where's that shotgun I gave you? Still has that inscription, right?" Tali was frozen.

"H-how… Just, how?" she breathed quietly.

"Well… the uh… long and short? I did in fact die."

"Preposterous," Prazza sneered.

"Let me finish? Please?" I remarked sarcastically. "Anyways, these bastards for some reason thought it would be a good idea to spend billions of credits and two years rebuilding the man with perhaps the largest bone to pick against their organization. When I found out it was them, I nearly broke this guy's neck and broke his jaw with a punch."

"Still aches" Jacob murmured.

"That was just yesterday. Would have shot them all and gone right back to the Alliance, but, well… it's the damn Reapers, Tali."

"What do you mean?"

"These colonies. According to their leader, hundreds of thousands of colonists have gone missing. Just like here. They wanted me back to fight them. I agreed to at least verify that the Reapers are involved. Regardless, I sure as hell won't ever be taking their orders."

"No organization would waste so much to bring back one soldier," Prazza scoffed.

"You haven't seen the Commander in action. You don't know what kind of man he is," Tali retorted. She sighed. I think she was smiling. "I believe you, Shepard. I…" she just began laughing a bit again, and hugged me, which I gladly returned "I just… I'm happy to see you alive." Miranda cleared her throat. Awkwardly, we parted.

"So, why are you here?" I asked.

"We're looking for a young Quarian, Veetor. He was here on pilgrimage," Tali explained.

"Bet he was the one who reprogrammed the mechs. So, you know where he is?"

"Cameras on our shuttle recently saw him running away from us. He's here."

"So, group together for one big push there? Mechs shouldn't prove a problem like that," I suggested.

"I trust you, Shepard. I don't trust them. And I'm sure you don't trust them either. It's better if we split up," Tali shook her head.

"Now we're working with these Cerberus det'kazuats?!" Prazza exclaimed.

"Better idea. Hold on." I turned back to Jacob and Miranda.

"Both of you, back to the shuttle. Stay there. Don't even begin to argue. Your boss said I'm in charge, didn't he?"

"Shepa-" Miranda began.

"Don't. Fucking. Argue," I put on a fake smile. "If you do, I'm sure the others here would be happy to help me shoot you for disobeying direct orders." Miranda glared daggers at me.

"You know you won't convince him, Miranda. Just go," Jacob turned to the door. Miranda muttered under her breath and turned. Now, it was me and the Quarians.

"So, I gotta know. I know why you'd hate them, Tali. But what happened for Cerberus to piss off the Quarian race?"

"They killed our people, infiltrated our flotilla, and tried to blow up one of our ships," Prazza murmured bitterly.

"The fuck?! Why the fuck would they possibly do that?" I exclaimed.

"Three humans from the Alliance were on the run from them. One of them, a little girl, biotic. Apparently, Cerberus had secretly been experimenting on her. She and two caretakers escaped, stumbled upon our people, and the fleet. Cerberus failed," Tali explained.

"Fucking bastards," I growled. "Alright, why don't we get a move on before I blow a gasket, eh?" Tali giggled, which seemed to take the other Quarians by surprise.

"You haven't changed a bit."

"You on the other hand, damn. A leader now. They grow up so fast," I joked, feigning a tear. She giggled again and punched me lightly in the shoulder. "And I see the new suit. When'd you get that?" A female Quarian with a green cloth and boxed patterns came up behind Tali, lightly placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Tali, we really should find Veetor. You two can catch up later, right?"

"Oh! Er, right. Sorry, Lana," Tali answered awkwardly. I just smiled and gestured for her to go ahead, and put my helmet back on. "We should have an easy route, if we follow the ramp to the ground level and follow along. These are mechs we're dealing with, after all. They won't all begin converging on our position. Those told to guard other locations will continue guarding those locations. We shouldn't have much trouble unless we run into a YMIR, and even then, if we remain careful, we should be able to handle it without much trouble. Understood?" The Quarians gave their confirmations, and we got on the move. I remained by Tali. Once we were back outside and beginning to follow the path down, one which would first lead through another prefab, some drones flew overhead, obviously calculating that they shouldn't yet attack. Problem is, we still got some shots and tech attacks off. One was left sparking, and one went crashing down. The pre-fab we entered was in fact a small kitchen, one filled with plenty of smoke as they had apparently been in the middle of cooking something. I coughed, and sealed my helmet. One of the Quarians opened and passed through the next door first, her shields immediately flaring, and she was pulled back in.

"Took a hit, but I'm alright. Antibiotics and Medi-gel flowing," she grunted.

"Drones set an ambush?" I asked.

"They did, Commander."

"Let me take point then. Think my shields and armor are a bit tougher."

"Nothing for us to lose," Prazza murmured. I notice Tali glare at him. I got against the door and readied myself. I primed an overload charge on my Omni-tool. I took a deep breath. I stepped out, already on a knee. The overload struck a drone, shorting it out entirely as a burst from my rifle cut into the other drone. Multitasking. Unfortunately, it took more shots than I'd have liked to put it down, and my shields were on their last legs when it went down. So, I got down, fully putting myself in cover along the sides of the walkway.

"Two drones left, just behind the building. There, and there," I pointed in their direction against the guard. Tali pushed her way to the front with another marine. A tech attack from her put down one, and fire from the marine put down the other.

"Clear. How's Maela?" Tali spoke.

"I just checked her. A flesh wound, nothing more. Suit's patched and I gave an extra dose of antibiotics to be safe," a male, their medic I would believe, answered. Tali nodded. We moved along to the lower level when more drones arrived. Fortunately, we heard them, and were ready. Tech attacks essentially annihilated them, shorting them out, causing them to collapse, and of course, some gunfire helped as well.

"There, that leads to the loading dock. We saw Veetor run there," Tali pointed to another large set of doors.

"If I was a terrified survivor of whatever the hell happened here, that's where I'd put the most resistance," I mused.

"Agreed. Form up in cover along the doors," Tali ordered.

"I'll take point at the concrete in front of it. Mind giving me a hand there, Prazza?"

"Fine," he grumbled.

"I'll get it open. On my mark," Tali stated. Everyone got into position. The large doors opened. There were some crates and machinery giving cover. Couldn't see any hostiles yet. But that-

Prazza vaulted over the barrier and about half of the Quarians rushed through.

"Stop! I order all of you to stop and fall-"

"We won't let Cerberus get their hands on- Ancestors! Fall-" Prazza shouted back, then cried out as we heard heavy MG fire. I looked up to see a YMIR mech turning a corner, already opening fire. Quarians were dropping. Trying to fall back. With a swing of its arm, it knocked a Quarian to the ground, shattering her mask, likely cracking her helmet. It then stepped on her back and she screamed out as it turned her head and torso to red mist. Only two of the Quarians who charged ahead managed to get back into cover. And they were clutching wounds.

"Damn it all!" Tali exclaimed.

"Take down its shields!" I shouted, having seen its shields already deflect rounds before. It seems the Quarians left were mostly combat techs, and they were lighting it up with tech attacks. Overloads, mostly. Almost instantly, when I fired a burst, I saw it hit armor rather than bounce away. It opened fire again, pinning us all down as it stomped forward. Well, good thing I still had this. "Another overload! Keep those shields down!" I noticed the one Tali call Lana raised her arm to fire off another charge as I requested. While I took the grenade launcher from my back, aimed high, and fired. Two grenades, two _thwumps_. They detonated on impact. One blew away some of its armor, the other tore through into something vital. The arm stopped firing, and it slowed. We just opened fire, tearing into it to make sure it was down. It detonated, turning to shrapnel and burning scrap.

"Check the wounded! Quickly! If they can still be saved, then Keelah, we will save them. Shepard, you go find and talk to Veetor, see what he knows. I'll be with you shortly," Tali stated.

"You sure? I have plenty of Medi-gel."

"Give it to our medic, Hesin, and go," Tali answered. I nodded, Hesin ran over to accept the Medi-gel canisters I had and I went to go find Veetor in the warehouse in this loading bay. The door was locked, but the encryption simple. There was a Quarian figure sitting in a chair, his back to the door. He was watching several displays, each showing different data.

"Monsters coming back. Mechs will protect. Save from swarms. Have to hide. No monsters. No swarms. No-no-no-no-no." he spoke to himself. Not even registering my presence. I took off my helmet, clipped it to my belt. I got a few steps behind him. He was still muttering that to himself.

"Veetor?"

"No Veetor. Not here. Swarms can't find. Monsters coming. Have to hide." he answered without even looking.

"Nobody is going to hurt you any more, Veetor. The monsters are gone," I spoke gently. He didn't respond. He just repeated the same phrase again from earlier again. I activated my Omni-tool, and linked with the system. I turned off the displays. He leaned back, breathing. I put a hand on his shoulder, gently. He turned back to look at me.

"You… You're human. Where did you hide? How come they didn't find you?" he questioned. Standing up.

"How come who didn't find us?"

"The… The monsters. The swarms. They took everyone."

"I'm sorry, Veetor. I only just got here. I don't know what you're talking about."

"You don't know. You didn't see. But I see everything." He faced the console again and typed away, he got the displays back on, but this time, showed security footage. Small bugs flying around, strange, organic looking pods laying out, with one being moved. I then saw what figures were moving it. And… putting a body into another? They looked like giant bugs. The door behind me opened.

"Veetor? Are you-" Tali began. "Keelah, are those Collectors?" Tali murmured.

"You know what those are?" I asked her.

"Did you ever hear about the Omega 4 relay, Shepard?" I nodded. Plenty of ships went through and never returned. "For what seems like ever, the Collectors were just a myth, a legend. Living beyond the relay. No one paid it much mind, but in the last two years, it's gotten more credible. We exiled someone because he sold some of our people to them. They offer advanced tech in exchange for living people. Normally, with some kind of abnormality in their genetics." The footage continued. Strange, one of the Collectors appeared to be on fire. But Veetor spoke before Tali or I could comment.

"The seeker swarms. No one can hide. The seekers find you. Freeze you. Then the monsters take you away."

"So, the little bugs are seekers?" I asked.

"Yes. They find everyone. They bite them. They take them away. Swarms didn't find me. Monsters didn't know I was here."

"Maybe the environment suit hid you from their sensors," Tali mused. "I suppose they weren't expecting any non-humans."

"So, what happened next, Veetor?" I asked.

"The monsters took the people onto the ship, and then they left. The ship flew away, but they'll be back for me. No one escapes," he whimpered.

"Thank you, Veetor. You were very helpful."

"I studied them. The monsters. The swarms. I recorded them with my Omni-tool. Lots of readings. Electromagnetic. Dark energy."

"Can I have a copy? Of your research and the recording?" Veetor nodded, and began the transfer. "How many of your people made it?" I asked Tali.

"The two you saw escape and one other. Always knew Prazza was hot headed, but this? Damnit," she murmured. "But, what's next for you?" I took a deep breath, hands on my hips.

"Believe me, I'd love nothing more than to just catch a ride with you, even if it's just to drop me off at a port, instead of going back with the Cerberus fuckheads. Just… fuck. The damn Reapers. This reeks of them. And Humanity is under attack. Besides, how much of a damn headache is the whole 'I'm alive again,' thing going to cause? I don't know… Part of me thinks I should just suck it up, go back, tell The Illusive- no, fuck calling him that. TIM, I'll go with TIM. Title is a mouthful," I muttered. "Tell him what I saw. See what happens next. I may not be able to stand looking at myself in a mirror, but, this is bigger than all that, I suppose."

"Lana, would you please bring Veetor back to the ship? I need a moment to talk with Shepard," Tali stated through the comms. A moment later, that woman came through the door, and led Veetor away. Closing the door behind them. Tali hugged me. Pressing her head up against my chest. I returned it. "I… I don't know what you should do, Shepard. But, I trust that whatever you chose, it'll be for the right reasons. Part of me even wants to go with you," she managed a chuckle. Though it sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "But I have another mission coming up. One important to my people. We'll have to see afterwards."

"Alright. Well… shit, guess I should go see what happens, then. Just, well, promise to keep in contact, eh? If I'm going to stay sane with those motherfuckers, I think I'll be needing to hear your beautiful voice," I remarked. Realizing too late just what it was I had said. Tali looked up eyes wide. She chuckled nervously, a chuckle I returned. Just as nervously.

"I promise. It… It's already nice hearing your voice again." Unsure of what to do, we just… hugged again.

"Think we're going to have to have a talk when we next see each other."

"I think so," Tali murmured. I cleared my throat, nervous.

"Well… uh… good luck. And… guess I'll be seeing you."

"Yes, yes. Uh… good luck to you too, Shepard." We started going our separate ways. Me to my shuttle, Tali to hers.

I couldn't stop smiling. Unfortunately, my mind decided to remind me about the Collectors, and about what happened here. Not to mention reminding me about the Reapers, and how so little has been done to prepare. But… hey, I may not be a religious or superstitious man, but coming back from the dead two years later, and less than a day afterwards, finding your… shit, crush? That's a goddamn sign.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Few things I need to mention that I think I forgot to mention in the foreword of this story. One of them is a kind of update of sorts. The update is a thanks once again to Way of the Sheikah for adding the second installment of the Normandy Saga into the A Quarian and her Captain Community. First of the things I need to mention, is that you may have noticed the use of "Det'kazuat." I've taken inspiration for Quarian culture and language from Calinstel. Not every aspect, but he made a well developed culture. Second, the Quarian names came to me simply because of the Quarian name generator at the Fantasy name generator website. That's all that's coming to mind for the moment. Anyways, hope you enjoyed!**


	5. SR-2

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey everyone! Before we get started, I have an announcement. I've created a for this story! Now, while I'm not in need of cash, 18 year old living with his parents for the first two years of college to get Gen eds out of the way, then moving out and moving on for a degree (one which will hopefully lead me to become a writer in the Game Industry) the money will however be able to help me with some things. It will help fund the story that will follow the trilogy, and it will help fund the story that follows that one, as I aim to make it entirely original. But also, you can recieve benefits! From a cameo, to sneak peeks, even to your own one-shot story arc! (A nice way to help continue my overall Into the Great Unknown and Normandy Trilogy universe even when the main stories are all complete.) In addition, you can even pledge and receive a fluffy smut chapter. If you're interested, find me at**

 **(pat-re-on) . {com) / MakoGT  
**

 **Look I know how stupid that looks but this website hates URLs with a passion. add the HTTPS and the www. and all that stuff, remove the brackets, parenthesis, hyphons, you all are smart enough to know how they work. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

"And so Veetor went back to the fleet, and I got this data here," I finished recounting what had happened. Not sure why I told them. Maybe it's just that I'm in a rather good mood, maybe it's that I know they'd bother me incessantly about it. Maybe both.

"You should have brought him back with us. We could have questioned him, seen if he knew anything else," Miranda argued.

"Come on, Miranda, he clearly wasn't in the best state of mind. Cerberus would only have gotten a terrified Quarian in a perpetual panic attack," Jacob remarked.

"And probably a corpse down the line," I glared at Miranda yet again.

"Changing topic, seems this mission did some good for you, Commander. You and Tali' Zorah seemed really happy to see one another again."

"We were, are, good friends," I left my answer short. He was trying to make conversation, but, well, I was giving off an air of 'None of your business.'

"Do you believe the Collectors are agents of the Reapers?" Miranda questioned, changing subject again. I sighed.

"I do."

"And have you come to a decision as to what next?" I gave her a look.

"Your boss is going to have to make one hell of an offer to get me to even contemplate any form of working relationship. And no matter what he offers, I will never wear your logo, I will never take his orders, I will never endorse your organization, and if I ever meet TIM in person, I will shoot him. No matter what is offered," I stated.

"Wait, TIM?" Jacob asked, unfazed by the rest, while Miranda again was frowning, glaring.

"You really expect me to say that jackass' title every time?" I raised a brow. It then clicked for Jacob. He even chuckled.

"Shit, maybe that's his real name."

"A careless way to hide one's true identity. I doubt The Illusive Man would be so foolish," Miranda retorted. In spite of myself, Jacob and I actually shared a glance before I rolled my eyes. It was quiet for the rest of the flight.

When we did arrive back to the station, we docked in the same bay as before, and apparently, TIM was ready to see me immediately. Might as well get it over with. I was still in my armor, as I didn't really have anything to change into, nor did I want to be unarmored in a Cerberus station, but I had left my helmet clipped to my belt. I stood on the circle in the dark room, and the holographic display started up. TIM was sitting in his chair, cross legged again.

"Shepard. Good work on Freedom's progress. The Omni-tool data you retrieved, while it presented no new data, it was a surprising olive branch, given our history."

"Yeah, a history of chasing down little girls, experimenting on them, and slaughtering civilians. Now, where have I seen that before?" I questioned rhetorically. He just took another drag of his cigarette.

"As I said, you and I have different methods. But I can't refute your results."

"Maybe you should try playing nice instead. Then you won't get people like me hunting you and your agents down," I suggested.

He was clearly not at all amused by this conversation. And I learned something about this Illusive Man. He's prideful. Perhaps he can keep it in check most of that time, but I see that his pride is driving him into an argument. I know I have some pride as well, but I'm hostile here because I fucking hate these pricks. I'm arguing at every chance I get because of how much I fucking despise them. I will be as much of a petty inconvenience to them as I can so long as I'm not shooting them. Mark my words.

"Diplomacy is great when it works, Shepard. But it's difficult when everyone already perceives you as a threat."

"Because you are a threat, dipshit! Even to your own goddamn species, you are a fucking threat!" I snarled. That statement set me off. Trying to play the innocent here, fuck right the fuck off.

"I can see this won't get either of us anywhere," he muttered. "Shall we return to the matter at hand?" I crossed my arms over my chest. "You confirmed the Collectors are behind the abductions, that's indeed important."

"You already had an idea, didn't you?"

"I had my suspicions, of course. Abductions without drawing attention or a trace is their MO, but not on this scale before. I needed proof before committing resources against them. I understand you're not familiar with them. What's important is that they keep themselves generally to the Terminus Systems whenever they venture to our side of the Omega 4 relay. And they always want something seemingly unimportant, or living specimens. Usually in exchange for Collector technology. All of it, highly advanced. When their transaction is complete, they disappear back through the relay. This is why so little is known about them. They are virtually ghosts."

"And they're targeting Humanity for the Reapers because of the role played against Sovereign?" I asked, not quite believing it.

"It's honestly our best guess. But that's not what disturbs me. If they're targeting us, why bother kidnapping the Colonists, instead of killing them?" he mused.

"I'd still rather they be alive to be rescued," my brows furrowed.

"As do I, Shepard. My point is that they have some reason to be keeping our people alive. Something that will likely benefit the Reapers. I don't like not knowing."

"Speaking of knowing, how do you _know_ the Reapers are involved?"

"Patterns buried in the data. Patterns that line up perfectly from readings from Sovereign, even Saren. It matches to the exact digit, Shepard. The Council and Alliance want to believe their threat died with Sovereign. You and I know better. I will not wait until they are on the march. We must take the fight to them."

"As much as I hate to say it, I do have to agree."

"And now, for the offer. Do you accept Cerberus' aid against the Reapers? I'm already well aware of what you said to Miranda in the shuttle. I won't give you orders, but I will provide you with intel and with funding. I already have a list of dossiers on the best soldiers, scientists, and mercs out there. You need the best of the best, and that's what I'm prepared to give you, though finding and convincing them could prove challenging. Then again, you are a natural leader.

"I want the ones I trust. My old team."

"That was two years ago, Commander. They've moved on. If they offer their aid, I of course won't complain. But even if you can get all of them to join you, it's also too small. And not enough roles will be filled."

"Where's Garrus? I know he'd join me in a heartbeat," I questioned. I already knew what the situation was with Tali. I planned to message her later, see if she'd be willing to drop a hint as to when and where that mission she mentioned is.

"Vanished. Dropped off the grid a few months after your death. Even we haven't been able to locate him." Damn, I really hope he's not dead… Maybe I can figure something out if I do a bit of digging.

"Alenko?"

"Still with the Alliance and promoted. His file is surprisingly well classified. I don't know where he is at the moment, but it shouldn't be too difficult for you to send word."

"Liara?"

"Illium. My sources say she's working for the Shadow Broker. If so, she can't be trusted." I raised a brow.

"Liara T'Soni? Working for the Shadow Broker? I find that a little hard to believe. Besides, untrustworthy? I know the Broker's after me, but I wouldn't expect her to up and betray me for some credits." TIM just shrugged.

"I don't expect to get him on the crew, but what about Wrex? How's he been doing?"

"He's regained control of his clan, and is still in the process of uniting the other clans. Cerberus doesn't have much intel on what goes on there, but I can confirm that he's having at least some measure of success."

"That's good to hear at least. And I could just go to the Council. I am a Spectre, after all."

"If you can convince them, by all means, go right ahead. Just remember. You have been gone a long time. Things change," he reminded. "So, do you accept?"

"I guess it means I'll have to ignore Cerberus operations?" I asked, already knowing the answer. TIM nodded. Hm, guess I could still pass along tips if I hear something I really don't like. "I… will accept your funding and your intel." I noticed TIM grin, slightly.

"Three things before you go. First, a recommendation. Go to Omega, find Mordin Solus. He's a brilliant Salarian scientist. I believe he's your best bet at finding a countermeasure to the Collector weapon. Second, you'll need a ship. One has been provided, built just for this mission. Third, I've found a pilot I think you'll like. I hear he's one of the best. Someone you can trust."

That recommendation seems solid enough. Though I almost want to just ignore it to spite him. The ship seems interesting, and pilot? Why is there a hint of humor in his features? The door behind me opened and the display went away. Brow raised, I turned to see a relatively small figure step inside. He wore a cap that read, "SR2." White and black in color. His skin was light, even slightly pale with a beard he let grow out a bit. His uniform was Cerberus, but the man certainly didn't fit that logo.

"Hey, Commander. Just like old times, huh?" he smiled.

"Joker! What the hell are you doing here?" I exclaimed, laughing as I stepped towards the man. I reached my hand out for a shake, and he accepted, holding it tight, as I did so gently. Don't want to break him. But I did pull him in to pat him on the back.

"Being your pilot. What else?" he smiled. "They found me at the thousandth bar I was in for about a year and a half. The Alliance grounded me, but they offered to treat my Vrolik's, and not only give me the chance to fly again, but fly for you. Try turning that down," he remarked. He then gestured for me to follow.

"I'm still on the edge of turning it down," I muttered.

"Yeah? Well, there's this too." Joker lead me up a staircase to a viewport. A dark hangar bay. But I could see a shape inside. A ship. But not just any ship… The lights in the hangar bay came online. The lengthy bow, the wings and thrusters at the back. It was almost identical. But larger. And with a different paint job. White and black with the Cerberus logo. There was no name on it yet. But… was there really any other name I could give it.

"It's almost perfect. There a dockmaster nearby?" I think Joker already had an idea as to what I was going to do. Joker led me towards an office nearby. Surprising me with how well he was walking. Still not completely normal, but not the hobble he once had. An older, balding man sat inside.

"Commander Shepard! I trust you're pleased with the ship?" he greeted formally.

"Not quite. I have a few… demands."

"Oh? What do you mean?"

"Paint job. White and red and black. Just like the old one. And, get that fucking logo off my ship," I requested calmly.

"I'm sorr-" he began.

"You fucking heard me," I slammed a fist down on my desk. "Your boss has a problem with it? Tell him that I will fucking stay right here, not moving a damn muscle until the entirety of my ship is cleansed of the filth that is that logo. And I don't just mean the exterior. Inside too. I don't care what you have to do to get rid of them, just do it. Oh, and then, only then, we have a name for her."

"Uh…" the dockmaster was apparently quite surprised. "Yes, I'll need to send word to the Illusive Man first. And as for the name?" I glanced at Joker. He was chuckling. Upon noticing I was looking at him, he gave a nod.

"Normandy. What else?"

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

It seemed that TIM wasn't eager to waste so much time on debating this with me. Especially since I was absolutely adamant to not budge in the slightest. He relented, and I relented only to allow Miranda to keep the logo behind her desk in her quarters. She would apparently be acting as XO and would file the mission reports sent to TIM. TIM also did reveal that the ship was, expectedly, covered by surveillance equipment, but that he had also decided to leave my room free of such equipment. Both knowing that I'm more than capable of finding and removing such equipment, and believing that it would only make me more comfortable.

Only when the paint job had been completed, did I finally step foot upon the New Normandy. It was well lit, brightly colored. So far, design seems more or less identical. Though, there is a door behind the galaxy map, instead of a wall with another door behind it. It was fully crewed, all human, of course. Most were in their seats at their consoles, running checks, while Joker went off to the cockpit. Miranda and Jacob were both already waiting in the middle of the CIC. As I approached them, the regular crew couldn't get their eyes off of me. Wonder, mostly, seems like. A few salutes were thrown my way, likely those who were ex-alliance. The display at the Galaxy map was currently one of the Normandy, but changed to the Galaxy as I approached. Must be tied to the Captain's Omni-tool or something of the sort.

"Commander. I trust The Illusive Man told you his suggestion on where to start?" Miranda asked.

"Yeah, Mordin Solus. Get ourselves a countermeasure." I nodded.

"Acquiring Professor Solus seems like the most logical place to start," another woman's voice agreed. Strange, sounds like it came from the sound systems. That would explain the slightly synthesized voice.

"Who, and where, are you?" I asked. I heard a beep, and a blue hologram lit up at the front of the center of CIC. It was a blue ball with a thinner stand below it. Like a pawn in chess. It had a ring surrounding the stand, and along the ball were a series of horizontal lines. Lines that moved in sync with the response.

"I am the Normandy's artificial intelligence. The crew like to refer to me as EDI."

"An AI? Cerberus really doesn't know how to learn from history, do they?" I muttered under my breath. "Already know Joker won't like sharing his ship with anyone."

"I do not helm the ship. Mr. Moreau's talents will not go to waste." Guess she's cut off from parts of the ship? Least there's that precaution. Wait, shit. I've already called this AI a she instead of an it. Huh. Eh screw it, I don't care enough to go through the effort of correcting myself all the time. "During combat, I operate the electronic warfare and cyber warfare suites. Beyond that, I cannot interface with the ship's systems. I observe and offer analysis. Nothing more."

"So, anyone else I should meet?"

"You have a Yeoman, she's up here by the elevator. You'd also want to meet the ship's doctor, she's on the crew level, same as the Mess Sergeant. Finally, only two crew members work on the engineering deck. Both have so far refused the position of chief engineer, perhaps you can help them decide."

I wonder how much of the crew are Cerberus loyalists…

"Well, before I do any of that, I want to get out of this armor. Gets heavy after a while," I remarked.

"I get that. I'll be in the armory. I'm sure you'd like to go over what we have in stock before we arrive," Jacob nodded.

"Just to confirm, Omega, correct?" Miranda asked.

"Yeah, I haven't looked over the other dossiers yet. So, might as well just go there."

"Excellent. I'm sure EDI has already notified the dock crew. We'll be en route shortly. As for me, I will be in the XO quarters on the Crew deck. It's in the same location as your quarters on the old Normandy. As for your quarters, where you will find plenty of clothes, it's on level one. Just above us."

"Thank you. And, Jacob, armory. Cargo bay?"

"Negative, Commander. CIC, just over there," Jacob pointed to a door at the back of CIC, a door to my right, as I was facing the back.

"The hell? So, when we're all getting ready for an op that requires a shuttle or ground vehicle, everyone has to go to CIC, and then back to the cargo bay? The hell? Just put the damn armory in the cargo bay!" I exclaimed. "Waste of time, that." I was already walking towards the elevator before Jacob or Miranda could respond.

"Commander," a redheaded woman working at a terminal at the back of the main CIC display greeted with a friendly smile. I just returned a nod. I take it that will be my Yeoman, but I'll do introductions when I'm out of this armor.

If I'm going to be working with them, it'll help my sanity if I'm not constantly pissed off at everyone. And then, I guess who here even knows what Cerberus is truly responsible for? I got in the elevator, and pressed the key for deck one. The doors shut, I heard the hum of the machinery, and then the doors opened only five seconds after. Good, least it doesn't have the old Normandy's problem with elevators. In bold, white lettering along the wall was "Deck 1: Captain's Quarters." Oh, so the whole deck is for me then, eh? Won't complain about that. I walked up to the door.

"The door to your quarters is synched to your Omni-tool, Commander. It will open only for you. All others must request permission, unless you wish to sync another's Omni-tool to the door. However, this can be overridden in case of an emergency," EDI explained.

"Awfully convenient," I mused. The door opened, and, well, it was evident this was no traditional military ship. My quarters were the size of a small apartment. And a luxury one at that. It had a sizable fish tank that already had a decent collection swimming about. I think only one of them was from Earth.

"A VI will ensure the fish remain fed," EDI added.

"Thought there wasn't any surveillance in here," I questioned.

"Not visual or audio, Commander, but if you look to the left of the fish tank, you will see a display for me. All this does is allow me to monitor your vitals, and I am able to extrapolate your location in the quarters. The only reason I can hear you now, is that we are engaged in conversation, and the microphone is online. Once you are five feet away, it will disable. If you wish to communicate orders from elsewhere in the room, your Omni-tool or your private terminal is always available," EDI explained. I continued exploring. Opposite the fish tank was an office space. A large desk with a wheeled chair, and a display, with a model ship of the SR2 inside. Guess I have a hobby I could start.

Behind the desk was a door activated by motion sensor. A bathroom. Shower, shitter, sink. I then went down to the part of the room that was a mere two steps lower than the rest. Where there was a very nice, comfortable looking double bed, with two large white pillows and white sheets, a nightstand on either side, one with a lamp. Another, smaller desk, and a large sofa with a coffee table. And of course, a closet. I opened it to find that half of it was in fact dedicated to my armor, and a place to keep my under suit. Before I started to undress though, I had to make sure that any of the clothes in the closet I could wear. Of course, they'd all fit me perfectly, but anything that has that symbol? Absolutely not. I dug through, tossing everything I found with that logo out onto the bed. By the time I was done, I was left with one pair of skivvies, jeans, and a black t-shirt. Meanwhile, about twenty of each were on my bed, carelessly tossed aside. I got changed, and then grabbed the bundles of clothes. I could hardly see, but I managed. I walked back to the elevator.

"EDI, take me to CIC." The elevator began to move. The doors soon opened, and I stepped out, walking up to the raised platform that I would interact with the Galaxy map from. I dropped the clothes down into a pile. "EDI, record this, and disable the fire suppression systems in this section of CIC. Once finished, I want you to send the recording to all crewmembers and the Illusive Man," I ordered.

"Com-"

"EDI, do it."

"Yes, Commander."

"Everyone!" I shouted loudly, gaining the attention of all of CIC. "These are all the clothes I found in my closet with the Cerberus logo. From skivvies to shirts. This is what I think of Cerberus. The organization that ruined my life, then had the audacity to think saving it made up for it." I stepped back, and readied my Omni-tool. When I had been fiddling around with it, I noticed it had something called an Incinerate charge. It microfabricated a small incendiary charge that can apparently melt through heavy armor. I fired the charge at the pile of clothes. It entered a blaze nicely. I stood with my hands behind my back, and watched. The smoke rose and spread, but I didn't care. I just watched it burn. It was quiet as the fire crackled.

"I smell smoke, what's-" Jacob began, coming out of the armory. I looked back as he saw what was going on. Me standing in front of me burning a pile of clothes. Surprisingly, he didn't leave. And I returned my gaze to the fire. I then noticed Joker had made his way over too, with a cough. But he leaned back against a wall, and was smirking.

"Want me to add my shirt to the pile, Shepard?" Joker remarked.

"By all means, go right ahead." He pulled his shirt off, and tossed it on the fire, leaving himself shirtless. Eventually, the fire began to die as it ran out of fuel. Through the fire suppression was offline, as ordered, EDI was making sure the air was being filtered out. "If any of you have absolutely no idea as to why I despise Cerberus so absolutely, send me a message. In two days' time, I will gather all who have questions, and explain. EDI, I'm finished here. End recording." I returned to the elevator, and decided I'd go down to CIC. See this doctor and the Mess Sergeant. Then I'd go to engineering, then I suppose ask the Yeoman to meet me in my quarters for introductions.

The door to the crew deck opened, but it was the door towards the back of the elevator. There was a wall ahead, but also a hallway with several doors. All labeled. To my left, the door at the far end was starboard observation. The door to the crew quarters was closer to the back of the ship, and towards the front on the left side was the women's restroom. Right side, life support towards the back, port observation and lounge at the end of the hall, and the men's restroom towards the bow.

I stepped around the bend towards the bow to find that other than the back hallway, the design and layout of the crew quarters was identical to the old Normandy. Though instead of a captain's quarters to the left, it was obviously the XO's. To the right was the med-bay, though it now had windows allowing those in the mess to look inside. And this time it had a fully equipped kitchen. As for the mess itself, it already had a large vidscreen. Guess TIM knew I got one for the old Normandy and decided to keep that little trend. Along the bow of the ship was a narrower corridor holding sleeper pods, again, like the old Normandy. But at the end of that hall was a door labeled gun battery. Must mean we have stronger weapons. Curiously, the Mess Sergeant wasn't present in the kitchen. So, might as well meet the doc.

Inside were two medical beds, and two exam beds. The former for any operations and procedures, the latter just to diagnose. The role of each bed was given away by the equipment beside or even over each. At the end was a door labeled server room, and right by the door I just opened was a desk. A chair with its back turned to me, and a head of white hair sitting. Working at a terminal. Whoever it was must have heard the door open, and turned.

"Commander John Shepard," the woman beamed. My eyes went wide. She stood, and immediately wrapped me in a hug, which I immediately returned. "Words can't explain how happy I am to see you alive."

"Karin? What-what are you doing on a Cerberus ship?!" I questioned as I recovered, and laughed.

"Is it? I thought their mark had been removed," she chuckled. "What you endured would have changed most people. But not you, I see. Welcome back," she smiled again, pulling back from the hug.

"I gotta know, how did they convince you to wear that uniform? To work for them?"

"I don't. I work for you. On a mission that may well be crucial to Humanity's survival. I know you, Shepard. I trust you. Your dealings with Cerberus will remain ethical."

"If you want we can get you a new uniform and burn the Cerberus ones. I just did with all of mine," I offered. Chakwas laughed.

"Of course you did. Is that what the message from EDI was about?"

"Maybe. So… does mom know?"

"I didn't tell her, as I couldn't be certain. On one hand, there's a chance we could all die at the end of this. On the other hand, there was the same possibility against Saren. I'll let you decide. But I will warn you, if she learns your alive through the media? There will be absolute hell to pay."

"You're right about that…" I chuckled, scratching the back of my neck. "What were you up to before this?"

"I was reassigned to the Mars Medical facility. Respectable, but you know me. I much prefer being on a starship."

"That I do. Now, you let me know about anything you could need, anything at all. I'll get it done."

"Thank you, Shepard. Oh, and I thought you'd like to know. I've spoken with all of the crew, and I have made quite the interesting observation. Few of them have been with Cerberus very long. Most are ex-Alliance who believed your warnings, or saw how the Council essentially tossed you aside. Some have been with Cerberus for much longer, yes, but I believe almost none truly know what this organization has done."

"Hm. Interesting indeed… Thanks, doc."

"Anytime." We hugged one more time, and I went on my way to engineering. When the door opened, it was a hallway with windows looking down towards the shuttle and cargo bay. To the left and right were additional cargo holds, as well as doors to engineering, which were behind me. I passed through one of the doors, noticing that there was first an engineering subdeck access before Engineering proper. I opened the next door to see two consoles offline against a wall. I had entered from port side. I stepped forward, and saw that the two engineers were on starboard side. A man and woman. The man was clearly ginger, and the woman, brown-haired.

"Commander Shepard!" the man spoke with a clear Scottish accent. "You came all the way down here to see us?" he was surprised. In awe, a little. Expectedly, both were wearing a Cerberus uniform. Though with some stains. The woman saluted, and glared at the man.

"You're speaking to our commanding officer," she reminded with an angry whisper. The man's eyes went wide, and he too stood at attention and saluted.

"Are you new to Cerberus? Or loyalists?" I questioned. This will determine how I interact with them.

"New, sir. We served in the Alliance as engineers for years. We saw how your warnings were ignored, and our reactions didn't do us any favors. But, it got us noticed by Cerberus, and signed on to work for you on the Normandy," Gabby explained, still at attention.

"Then at ease. I'm just touring the ship. You are?"

"Kenneth Donnelly. I handle the power control systems. This is Gabby," the man pointed a thumb at her. She cleared her throat and elbowed him in the side.

"Engineer Gabriella Daniels. I'm responsible for propulsion."

"Gabby and Ken work for you both, then?"

"Aye, that's what we call each other," Ken nodded.

"Well, the both of you are Alliance, don't really know what these shit bags have done. In the Alliance, I run a tight but informal crew. Cerberus though, I'll run those assholes tight and formal as hell. So, what did you two do in the Alliance?"

"Both Gabby and I served on the SSV Perugia. We were there when Captain Stanford's battlegroup helped you in the Armstrong Nebula. Those battles were a work of art," Ken remarked.

"Pretty sure that's something going into the military history books."

"Don't think it compares to the battle of the Citadel, though. We were there for that too," Gabby added.

"So, two of you have just been ghosting me then," I joked. The two of them found humor in it, smirking in Gabby's case, chuckling in Ken's. "I hear you're not appointing a chief engineer? I'm interested why that is."

"It's just the two of us, and we've been partners in crime since we graduated from tech academy. Technically, Ken was the only one to receive the offer from Cerberus, but I insisted he include me in it. He'd fall apart without me," she began.

"Thanks mum," he rolled his eyes.

"In all honesty, it's just that we work better as a team than one of us as the boss. Besides, neither of us would ever accept the other bossing them around," she chuckled.

"And, just clarifying, you don't know anything about Cerberus?"

"Nope." Gabby answered.

"All I know is that we're off to kick the Collectors right in their daddy bags. That's enough for me." I couldn't help but bark a short laugh.

"Daddy bags? That's a new one. So, two of you set up just fine down here?"

"Can't complain. Just wish it didn't take so long to calibrate the FBA arrays-" Kenneth began.

"Kenneth. You're complaining," Gabby elbowed him again.

"No, no. Go ahead. I know tech, I know how much of a pain in the ass it can sometimes be. If there's something you can get to make it easier, tell me."

"When they upgraded the Normandy designs, they were a bit sloppy with the FBA couplings. You know the attenuators in the transfer system?"

"Yeah, they channel field bleed, manage the radiation and everything, keep it under control."

"Right, well, the models we got are unreliable. Every day they need maintenance, several times a day. And it's not an easy fix. If we swapped it out for FBA couplings, it would almost completely fix the problem."

"I know tech, but models on engine parts aren't something I remember too well. And that's ignoring the two years. Why aren't they already installed?"

"Oversight most likely. Efficiency isn't lost, just maintenance," Gabby answered.

"And the T6 can be hard to find. Nashan Stellar Dynamics discontinued them," Ken added.

"We're going to Omega though, right? We could probably find used ones in the Omega markets," Gabby suggested.

"Consider it done." I took my leave, returning to the elevator. I heard Ken and Gabby behind me.

"I'm amazed Shepard came down to see us."

"Told you he would." The door closed behind me.

"EDI, tell the Yeoman to meet me in my quarters," I ordered as I made my way there myself.

"Yeoman Kelly Chambers has been notified. Shall I stop the elevator at CIC?"

"Why not? Go ahead," I shrugged. The elevator stopped, and its doors opened, a red-haired woman, the same I saw before, entered, she was wearing a friendly grin.

"Commander, I'm Yeoman Kelly Chambers. I've been assigned as your administrative assistant. I will help manage your messages and monitor the crew. That was an… interesting display, earlier. I'm interested in learning just what caused it."

"And I can't wait to spread the word."

"I must say, it's an honor to work under you." The doors opened, and we stepped into my quarters. I took a seat on the couch, gestured for her to do the same across from me.

"So, Chambers-"

"Please, call me Kelly."

"That depends. What do you think of Cerberus?"

"From what I know, our methods can sometimes be harsh, but the goals are noble. We look out for human interests, advanced human technologies, save human lives. They're good goals."

"Those goals, maybe. But I know damn well Cerberus has other, less noble ones, Chambers. Mankind dominating the other races, for example."

"Cerberus looks out for humanity, but that doesn't mean we hate aliens. My sister started a dog shelter, but she loved cats too. I love Humanity. I also love Asari, Turian, Salarian, Hanar, the list goes on. That isn't in conflict with Cerberus ideals."

"I'm willing to believe that you believe that. But what I know from experience? Domination. The ends don't justify the means."

"And I can see how firmly you hold this. Now that we are in private, I can say that I have another role beyond my official role as Yeoman. I have a degree in psychology. I keep an eye on the crew, as this is a high-risk mission. I'm good at sensing when people are overly taxed."

"I see. You're free to go." I'm not sure what to make of her yet. I can't tell if she's naïve and doesn't know what Cerberus is responsible for, or if she knows, and is twisted enough to see past it. She took her leave, and I pulled up the dossiers. I had some reading to do.


	6. Omega

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Got a review I want to address directly to where all can see, as I wouldn't expect him/her being the only one feeling this way. Shepard won't always be so hard on Miranda and Jacob. Right now, in his eyes, they are literally nothing more than Cerberus scum. You'll see later that Shep begins the process of warming up to Jacob, but it'll take a lot of work for Miranda to shake some of her convictions, and become agreeable to Shep. That's all stuff I've been keeping in mind. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

As I had planned, after the conversation with Kelly, I was going over the dossiers I had been given. Meanwhile, of course, we were en-route to Omega. The first Dossier I opened was labeled: The Professor. Dr. Mordin Solus. He's ex-STG and in his thirties. His twilight years as a Salarian. He's an expert with Bio-Weapons, but his skills cover more or less anything remotely Biological. And beyond. Jack of all trades, master of all, it seems. At least, in science. So, he could help Chakwas in the Med-bay or any wounds in the field. That of course, on top of his research against the Collector Bio-Weapon. Maybe even developing new toys. There were some details about where he studied, but that wasn't something I was concerned about. Currently, he was running a clinic in the Omega Slums. An interesting change of pace for someone with his skills.

After closing Mordin's Dossier, I read through the others in alphabetical order. The first, was labeled Archangel. He's described as having small-unit tactical expertise, he's skilled with tech and his Omni-tool, and is a skilled sniper, at least from what Cerberus agents have gathered. He commands a kind of merc group that targets gang leaders and protects. The operations have been noticed for technical expertise and strategic brilliance, and a complete lack of any and all civilian casualties. A vigilante, it seems. Unfortunately, the only lead I have to find him, other than him being based on Omega, is that he's Turian.

The Convict. Jack. No last name, strangely. An exceptional biotic but with a criminal background, and is currently in custody. Jack is rumored to be the most powerful human biotic, but little else is known. Jack has a history of violence, and is held on a Freelance prison ship in the Terminus, ran by a Turian with close ties to the Blue Suns. Cerberus has already negotiated for Jack's release, so, as far as I'm concerned, this convict can wait.

The Master Thief. Kasumi Goto. Human, obviously, and the name is clearly Japanese. She's skilled in Sabotage, infiltration, extraction, property acquisition, a rather pretty word for theft, stealth, and agile combat. The dossier goes on to say how she's stolen extremely valuable resources from Cerberus in the past. Alarm systems, DNA encoders, guards, and plenty other security systems were all bypassed, and Cerberus has no idea how. I think I'll like her. Cerberus, clearly with this mission in mind, decided to track her down. I doubt they succeeded in making contact with her, but rather she learned they were looking to contact her, and made the first move. A deal was struck. I'm supposed to meet her on Zakera Ward on the Citadel, look for a special ad terminal by the docking bay there, and input the password, "Silence is Golden." Didn't know she was an old AMC theatre. Hm, the Citadel. Good chance for me to go see Anderson and the Council. Shit, if I go there, no way I'll be fully unnoticed. Maybe Chakwas can help me communicate with mom in a way that doesn't get her hopes up, but won't leave me with five million furious messages and calls. Back on track…

The Warlord. A Dr. Okeer. Krogan Doctor, eh? Interesting, only other one I ever saw was on Virmire. He's got several hundred years of strategic and combat experience. And apparently, a rumored familiarity with Collector tech. Dossier describes him as brilliant and brutal, and a veteran of the Rebellions. He's obsessed with saving the Krogan from the Genophage, and seems that he struck a deal with the Collectors to gain the necessary tech. He's at a Blue Suns camp on Korlus, which is basically a galactic Junkyard. His relationship with the Mercs is unknown. So, grab Mordin and Archangel, go to Korlus, get Jack, then Kasumi. Let's see how the next Dossier comes into play.

The Veteran. Zaeed Massani. Surprise, surprise, a name I actually know. Though I've never met or seen the man. He's a Bounty Hunter, and has the reputation as one of the best Bounty Hunters. That's more or less the limit to my own knowledge of the man. The dossier fills in the gaps. He's skilled in combat, survival, tactics, and protection. He's not like the more subtle bounty hunters. When he hits, he hits hard. Yet, at the same time, isn't an idiot about it. Lately he hasn't been taking many jobs, and instead spends his time drinking and shooting would-be rivals. Like with Kasumi, a deal had been struck with him. He's on Omega, wrapping up a bounty, but knows to meet up with us. We'll find him at Afterlife, the main bar and club.

As I closed the dossiers, an alert popped up. Seems TIM is finishing a few others.

So, game plan hasn't changed. Just picking up a third person on Omega is all. Might as well head down to the armory and see about weapons. I got off the chair, and into the elevator, took it down to CIC, stopping myself from instinctually pressing the cargo bay button. It opened, and I turned towards the armory. Jacob was cleaning his weapons.

"Commander, ready to see what we have?"

"I am. There a way for me to toy with them before we arrive?"

"Course. The briefing room can double as a small simulator. We have dummy weapons of everything on board that will simulate the whole thing perfectly. Even the kick," Jacob answered.

"Perfect. So, let's start with AR's." Jacob nodded, putting down his pistol and the dirty rag as he moved to one of the weapon lockers.

"You already know the Avenger, so I'll lay one out for you but won't bother going over it. We'll start with the M-15 Vindicator" Jacob took out and extended a brown rifle with a flat, trapezoid-like body. Simply made, and it had a scope. "High accuracy, low recoil. Fires in three round bursts with twenty-four shots a clip. 73 RPM overall, with 900 RPM per burst. You can pulse the shots to make it much more rapid. Not effective at close range, but strong at medium to long." I held a hand out to take it, and Jacob handed it over. I tested the weight and put the stock against my shoulder. Testing a good way to hold it. The grip, both for the hand at the trigger, and under the barrel, was comfortable enough, and easy enough to grip tightly. I set it down.

"That's one I think I'll take to the range. I prefer marksman weapons anyway."

"Then I'll pass over the M-76 Revenant. It's a full auto with a massive clip and high damage, but it's kick is brutal and it's inaccurate. Only one other AR weapon we have though, and you might recognize this one." He took out a clearly bulkier weapon and extended it. It was an older weapon, and one not generally used by the military. Farmers and Colonists normally.

"A Mattock?"

"Yes and no. Same name, but this one has gone through some upgrades. Funny story actually. EDI went over old battle telemetry and suggested that older, tried and true methods were being overlooked to try and make the cutting edge. An AI, telling us to tone down the tech," he chuckled. And I admit, I cracked a smirk. "We took some old Mattocks, but they still weren't military grade as they were. So, we adapted them to the new thermal clip system, and we modified its ammo. Lo and behold, the M-96 Mattock Heavy Rifle. Semi-auto with the low heat production of an AR, and a sniper's punch. Very accurate with next to no recoil. You can pulse through a whole clip and each shot will be tightly grouped. 750 RPM with 16 shots a clip. Surprisingly strong against both shields and armor, rather than one over the other. Up against an enemy with a helmet, it sometimes goes through to kill, sometimes it doesn't. But you can double tap fast enough that if they survive the first, it's impossible for them to not be hit by the second. Simulator showed me that," Jacob explained. I let out a whistle.

"That all sounds like it makes for a perfect gun, Jacob. Liking the sound of that more than the Vindicator."

"I'll get you set up in the sim with it once we're done. And final mention, the clip goes into the side right there. So, Shotgun?"

"Don't use em too often, but wouldn't hurt to go over them."

"Shotgun preferences?"

"Tighter spread, generally, but I want it strong enough to cut through a Krogan and his armor."

"Narrows it down to one. For now, at least. Goes by two names. Lieberschaft 2180, better known as the M-22 Eviscerator. Doesn't shave off chips or pellets from an ammo block, but rather serrated metal wedges that fly aerodynamically. Shreds armor, keeps the rounds grouped tightly, gives it better range. May or may not violate intergalactic weapons treaties. Militaries don't use it, but, well, Spectre's are a cut above that, aren't they?" Jacob remarked. "Three shots a clip, though, goes here, then pump it."

"Wouldn't hurt to try it. Sniper?"

"Honestly, with your preferences, you might as well stick with the Mantis. Hits the hardest," Jacob suggested. I just nodded. "Leaves us with pistols and heavy weapons. So, pistols, you still prefer something likely to take them down in one shot?" I nodded again. "Then you want the M-5 Phalanx. It's like the Carnifex, which they like to advertise as being able to stop a charging Krogan. The Phalanx is that but developed with military expertise. More accurate, more power," Jacob explained as he took the weapon out, placing it in front of me. "Even has a built-in laser sight. Clip goes in the same way as the Predator."

"Sounds good to me. So, last but not least, the big guns."

"Right. There is the M-100 Grenade launcher you used on Freedom's progress and the Lazarus facility. The only other heavy weapon we have on hand is the ML-77 missile launcher. The missiles themselves are small and easy to carry, easy to load, and it has an IFF homing system. Aim isn't a huge issue."

"Rather have that than the grenade launcher, even if it makes such a satisfying noise," I mused. "Now, weapon mods. I want a scope and foregrip for the mattock and a better sight for the Phalanx."

"Can do. Here, I'll set you up for the combat sim, then attach the mods. I'll send you copies of the weapon manuals."

"Thanks," I stated, as he led me along through a side door behind the elevator, behind CIC. At the other end was the tech lab, but the middle had a door. Inside was a small table in the center. The room otherwise painted completely white. The table descended to the floor, and some panels on the walls opened showing the frames of each weapon type. I took the rifle, and the panels retracted.

"It will scan you, then you'll see a target range. When you look at the weapon frame, it'll look just like a Mattock. Enjoy.

If I'm honest, I did.

After the session, I returned to the armory and let him know I was very happy with these weapons. Took some getting used to at first, of course, as I learned how much kick to expect as well as learning my body once again to see how much of it I could combat. I should probably go see about training for my new biotic capabilities, but that will also likely mean talking to Miranda. Something I'm just not eager to do right now. I thought I'd go see Joker. See how he likes the new Normandy. I made my way to the cockpit, seeing Joker front and center in the pilot's seat with all the displays lit up. Through the viewports, nothing but the pitch black of FTL. I also noticed that EDI had decided to keep her display online at a holopad beside him. Wonder what the purpose for that is. Joker must have heard the footsteps, and then the chair swiveled around. He saw it was me, and beamed. I could tell. He was ecstatic. And still shirtless.

"Am I dreaming, or something, Shepard? I mean, it's my baby! Better than new. Shit fits me like a glove! And leather seats," he shook himself in his chair. "Military set the hardware standard, but on a first-gen frigate, they could care less if the seats breathe. Civilian sector designs for comfort."

"Not sure this counts as civvie sector," I joked.

"The reproduction was not designed to be perfect, Mr. Moreau. Seamless improvements were made," EDI added. I noticed his features fell to annoyance.

"And there's the downside. Gotta admit I liked the Normandy better when she was beautiful and quiet." He began. Before he could continue, I butted in.

"So what, you like your ships like you like your women? Stick with sex dolls."

"Ha, ha, very funny. At least a sex doll wouldn't break my pelvis. What I was going to say, is that now, my baby has this thing I don't want to talk about. Ship cancer or something."

"I'll admit, the ship is good, great, even. Still, doesn't feel like home yet. Not like the SR1."

"There's still us, and Chakwas. I'll take what I can get. Last two years sucked," he looked down. Bad memories flooding him. "But that's the past now. Look, they invested too much to just screw us over. Even with this AI spying on us, it'll be better than the old days."

"Well, the old days did end by setting a pretty low bar. I died, won't take much to beat that," I joked.

"You're such a downer," he chuckled, turning back around. Before turning back towards me. "By the way, I heard you saw Tali on Freedom's Progress. How is she?" I couldn't help but smile.

"She's a leader now. She also slapped me." I revealed.

"Tali slapped you?! Are you sure it was the same girl?" Joker laughed.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I explained everything though, said she'd see about joining us once her next mission is done. I was actually going to send her a message, let her know about all this."

"Tell her I said hi." I nodded and turned to go back to my quarters. I got there and sat down in the chair in front of the Terminal. Ah, some setup. Just wants to link to my Omni-tool. It'll log in right away once it verifies its mine. Technically I can't access the extranet while in FTL. But there is a program that allows me to log into or create an email, and write up a message. Once out of FTL, and once connected to a comm buoy, the terminal will automatically sync with my email, and send the message.

 _Tali_

 _Like I told you, I went back to see what Cerberus was going to offer. As much as I wish I could have turned the offer down, I couldn't. For Humanity's sake. For the Galaxy's sake. Fortunately, TIM understands that I'd never take orders from him, or join his organization, so he has not made that any of his terms. He's willing to provide intel and funding in my mission against the Collectors. All I have to do is leave his operations alone. For now, at least. I'm sure this message is being read over, but I think you know how little of a shit I give. What's more, is that Cerberus has given me a ship. And I'd think you'd like it. The Normandy SR-2. It's still technically a frigate, but it's a bigger, stronger, faster, and more powerful Normandy. I haven't read up on the specs yet, but I plan to. It looks, and is laid out almost just like her, but bigger and with extra bits. The crew is all Cerberus, but it seems like few of them actually know anything about the organization. I think there's also two other members of the crew you'd be both surprised and ecstatic to see. I know I was._

 _Joker and Doc Chakwas. Both of them say hi, and hope to see you here soon. So do I._

 _Anyways, I've been given dossiers on specialists across the Galaxy to go and recruit. Right now, we're on our way to Omega. Have three different ones to recruit. A Salarian scientist, some Turian Vigilante called Archangel, and Zaeed Massani. One of the Galaxy's best bounty hunters. There are a few other dossiers elsewhere, and TIM is finalizing a few others, but I plan to add a few of my own to that. See if I can't find Kaidan or Garrus. Maybe see if Liara wants to join up. And, of course, you._

 _I'm looking forward to that talk, by the way._

 _Shepard_

I logged the message to be sent and took a deep breath. Couldn't help but smile a bit. Then my body decided to remind me how long it's gone without any sleep. I yawned and looked at my bed. Time to try it out.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

Fuck it, I'll say it. That was the best sleep I've had in years. Shitty jokes aside, that was really a good bed. I rolled onto my back, looking up as I opened my eyes. Hm, there's a viewport up there. I got out of bed and made my way to the bathroom. Huh, I think it is just a tad bigger. Won't complain. I finished and made my way to get dressed in my under suit, and then armor. Omega calls for that. Just as the door opened though…

"We will-" EDI began.

"Christ on a bike, EDI! I'm still waking up here! Look, if you need to tell me something when I'm in here, just… I don't know, ring a chime or something," I exclaimed. Thought I was alone in here. Gonna have to get used to this AI.

A chime rang.

"My apologies, Commander. I was trying to inform you that we would be exiting FTL in fifteen minutes. Just outside of the Omega asteroid belt."

"Thank you," I sighed. I got back to the business of suiting up, and when finished, made my way down to crew quarters. A decent amount of the crew was present, including Chakwas, Ken, and Gabby. I greeted them and noticed it was quiet now, most of the crew sitting straight up as they ate.

"If you don't know much about Cerberus, at ease," I stated. Grinning to myself as about three quarters relaxed their stance, while three continued to sit straight up, and even tossed confused glares at those now at ease. They seemed to also be waiting for me to say something. It wouldn't be what they were hoping to hear. "Who's the mess, sergeant?"

"That'll be me, Sir. Rupert Gardner," an older man answered a gruff voice.

"I'll just take a protein bar and some water, please."

"Right away." He returned a moment later with a protein bar and a bottle of water. I ate the bar, downed the water, and left. Went to the armory, got my weapons and clipped them to my armor, and stocked up on Thermal clips. My belt had a pouch on both sides that held about a dozen clips on its own. My greaves even had slots that could hold just a few more.

"EDI, anything changed in Omega since I've been gone?"

"Not by a significant amount. The addition of the Vorcha to the ranks of the Blood Pack have made them capable of expanding their influence and control through much of the station, but little else has changed.

"Vorcha?"

"A species discovered by the Blood Pack a few months after your death. They were a tribal society constantly fighting one another, and had not developed space travel on their own. They are not intelligent, savage, are short-lived, and reproduce rapidly. They are smart enough to use firearms, but generally not enough to think strategically. They have limited regeneration, like the Krogan, and are immune to all diseases."

"So, nothing of value has been gained," I muttered. I made my way to the bridge to watch. We exited FTL shortly, just outside the asteroid field, and right by Omega. Alerts popped up that we were connected to the comm buoy network, and that nearby ships were being tracked. Omega didn't have any air traffic control as it had no government, and no one cared enough to start one. If anything, the gangs would just tell anyone about to land in docking bays they keep for themselves to fuck off. I looked over the large station. Built into, though mostly 'under' a large asteroid. Red lights near the top with some kind of fins lining it. Maybe part of the shields that protect the station from other asteroids. The rest of the station just went down like a large pillar.

"Now, let's try to find somewhere to land…" Joker murmured as we got closer and closer to the station.

"Hey, you, Normandy," a gruff Batarian voice hailed us.

"Normandy responding. What do you want?" Joker answered.

"Aria wants to speak to you. Land by Afterlife. Over here," a dock designation was sent.

"Works for me," I shrugged. Joker took that as his go ahead.

"Fine by us. On our way." A lot less formal than the Citadel. And I wonder why Aria wants to see us. Maybe she recognizes the Normandy?

"EDI, ensure that Jacob and Miranda are ready to disembark. I want them armed. Have them report up here, we'll exit as soon as we dock."

"At once, Shepard."

"If this was anywhere else in the Galaxy, I'd ask to go out with you. Haven't been to a strip club in ages," Joker remarked.

"Well, least you're connected to the extranet here. I'm sure the local net is particularly filthy," I joked.

"Good point, just need to find EDI's cameras and cover em all up first. Don't want anyone at Cerberus to see that."

"My surveillance is in place for the safety of the crew, Mr. Moreau," EDI stated.

"What was it Ben Franklin said? He who sacrifices Liberty for Security deserves neither?"

"Yeah," Joker laughed. "The only security I need when jacking off is from viruses. And prying eyes." I chuckled with him as Miranda and Jacob arrived.

"Commander. First the ship, and now your own clothes. Must you really be so childish?" Miranda questioned. I turned glaring daggers.

"Lawson, childish would have been forcing the entire crew to strip to their skivvies until they found other clothes and uniforms. I'm sorry that I refuse to adorn myself or my ship with the symbol of a damn terrorist organization that killed forty-nine men and women under my command. Oh, and I know about the Idenna as well. Experimenting on a little girl, then killing innocent civilians to try and get her back."

"They most certainly exaggerated. And besides, it was hardly personal," Miranda shrugged off.

"Lawson. The only reason my fist is not connecting with your face right now is that I will likely need you all combat ready shortly. From this point forward, as your commanding officer, I order you to shut the fuck up. You will speak when spoken to. During combat, I will allow you to speak to provide tactical input." I growled. And I ended there, testing.

"This is-"

"Did I ask for your opinion?" I bellowed. "Did I give you permission to speak? Do you understand me?"

"Yes, sir," she answered, clearly furious.

"You goddamn better. Do the two of you know what one of the largest differences between Cerberus and I are? Unlike Cerberus, I will never knowingly put innocent lives at risk. Regardless of their species," I began pacing in front of them both, hands behind my back. "Unlike Cerberus, I will show mercy. Unlike Cerberus, I know that the ends do not justify the means. Lawson, do I make myself clear?" I stopped, right in Miranda's face.

"Sir, yes sir." She answered again.

"Taylor, do I make myself clear?" I stopped in front of him.

"Sir, yes sir." It wasn't lost on me just how different his response was to Miranda's.

Jacob showed respect.

"Taylor, I see you are not only armed but armored as well. I see you, like me, suspect that at least one of our potential recruits will take some convincing. And that convincing is most likely to involve combat. You plan well, soldier."

"Thank you, sir." he saluted. I stepped in front of Lawson.

"And I see you, Lawson, are still dressed in the same skintight suit as on Freedom's progress. Are you hoping to seduce our recruits into joining?"

"That is insulting!" she exclaimed.

"Indeed, it is! But what is more insulting, is that you are calling yourself a combatant! If you were a member of the deck crew, or if we were not about to exit the ship for potential combat operations, you could walk around in your skivvies and I couldn't give less of a flying fuck if I wanted! But if we come under hostile fire, if your shields, if your barrier collapses, you will have no protection against the next shot to come your way! Now while I will most certainly shed no tears at your loss, you will instead be compromising both the mission, and the lives of Taylor, myself, and any other combatants we recruit to our cause. If you are dead, that is one less combatant for our side. If you are wounded, then that will require one of us to protect and remove you from the battlefield, ridding us of two combatants! If biological weapons come into play, you will be exposed, you will not be fully sealed from the environment, and that will get you killed. If part of the station's hull becomes compromised to us, you will be exposed to a vacuum, and that is absolutely unacceptable! I order you to find, and don a full suit of armor. I do not care if it is light, medium, or heavy, but you are not leaving this ship with us until then. Understand?" I finished.

"Sir, yes sir," she still glared but stormed off towards the armory.

"Damn, I would have hated to have you as my drill sergeant," Jacob remarked.

"He wasn't even talking to me at all, and I think I shit myself," Joker called out, laughing.

"Going into combat unprepared… the fuck's going through her head?" I muttered.

"For what it's worth, she does have plenty of combat experience. As long as I've known her, never seen her in armor. Still comes out alive from combat ops."

"Wounds?"

"The occasional. You're no stranger to that either though," Jacob shrugged.

"But if she had armor she wouldn't have had as many of them. In battle, three things matter. Skill, first and foremost, followed by equipment. And just a dash of luck."

"True enough, but she's had quite a lot of luck," Jacob added.

"Ha!" I scoffed. "You think she'd have learned from having spent two years rebuilding me. Your luck runs out eventually." Jacob didn't answer. And I realized. I was talking to him… decently. Well, he did show respect, and while in the armory, he was being friendly, despite everything. Means he doesn't blame me for it. About half an hour later, Miranda returned, wearing an armor similar to mine, but black and orange, no N7, and she had a helmet attached to the belt.

"Now it's acceptable. Move out." The airlock doors opened, and we entered, then waited for it to equalize pressure. Didn't take long, and we disembarked the ship. I began leading the other two towards the end. There was a Salarian in scrappy, dirty clothes. He approached with a broad grin.

"Welcome to Omega! You're new here, aren't you?" A Batarian in armor, with Aria's symbol, a metal fist sheathed in biotic power, approached, one pair of eyes on the Salarian, those brows furrowed, and the other pair at us. "I can always tell. Allow me to-" The Salarian heard the footsteps behind and then beside him, the Batarian at the Salarian's side, body pointed at us, face to him. "Oh… Hello, Moklan!" the Salarian chuckled awkwardly. "I was just-"

"Fuck off, Fargut. Now," the Batarian warned.

"Of course, Moklan! Whatever she wants!" he nervously laughed, scratched the back of his neck, and ran off.

"Blasted scavengers," Moklan shook his head. He then faced us. Surprisingly, no animosity. "Welcome to Omega… Shepard."

"Surprised you know who I am," I remarked.

"Had you marked the moment you were in the system. You're not as subtle as you think," he shrugged. I turned back to Miranda and Jacob.

"Did we even have the stealth drive on?"

"No reason. We weren't trying to hide," Jacob answered.

"Well, there you have it, Moklan. If we didn't want, you to know we were here…"

"Whatever. It doesn't matter. What does, is that Aria wants to know what brings a dead Spectre to Omega. I suggest you come with me and present yourself."

"Tell her to relax. Here to find three people, maybe make a few purchases at the markets, and leave."

"A dead Spectre. Walking around on her station. She wants to know from you."

"Permission to speak, Commander?" Lawson requested bitterly.

"Granted."

"I advise we listen. Aria can be reasonable, but more than a pain in the ass when angry. Besides, she may be able to provide us with a lead on one of our recruits."

"Alright, then I suppose I'll play along. Lead the way," I gestured.

The Batarian turned and led us out of this docking bay. Turns out, we were right in front of Afterlife. At least, part of it. There was a line before the stairs that led up to the door, held back by an Elcor bouncer. The line was sizeable, but a large section of the way up and it was left open. For people that don't have to wait. Above the door was the club's name in bright holo letters, and a pair of fire jets on the left and right sides. And of course, a large vidscreen just above of a scantily clad Asari dancer. Some more guards were at the door, weapons down and relaxed, but still on show. After how long this system's been in place, those in the line knew better than to complain that we were bypassing them. The guards eyed us, me specifically, as we entered. It was a long hallway, with some chairs and sofas that had a few sitting in them. Plenty of variety to the species present. The walls were lined with video screens showing nothing but fire. We passed through the hallway to Afterlife proper. The center of the room was dominated by a large pillar surrounded by a 360 holo display. Showing more dancers, of course. Shaking their asses to techno blaring. The pillar extended to both the lower and upper levels. At certain intervals, the pillar was surrounded by a physical ringed platform with stripper poles, and dancers. Asari were exclusive to the main show, as every species lusted after them, but I noticed that on tables at the sides of the room, or the upper, still visible levels, there would be Humans, Turians, think I even saw a Batarian dancing for a group. So far, only seen females be doing the dancing. But I'm sure Afterlife has plenty of male strippers somewhere or other. Not really interested in where, though.

Moklan led us around the right side, past a bar staffed by a few bartenders. An Asari and two Turians, then up to the back of this area, towards a staircase protected by another Batarian guard. A VIP booth. The back housed people that must have Aria's favor. All being treated by dancers. I noticed that one Turian was had his arms sprawled out on his couch, legs spread wide, head back, and there was a little blue ass peeking out from under the table. Shaking and bobbing. But to the left, facing the inside of the bar, was three additional Batarian guards, two more Asari dancers on poles to the left and right of a large, sprawling, very comfortable looking sofa, and a purple Asari with her back turned, white vest, dark skin tight, maybe leather or spandex for all I know, and leggings. Along her side, just above and at the hips, showed some skin. Moklan gestured for me to step up. So, I began walking up the stairs. I was only halfway up when she spoke.

"That's close enough." One of the guards stepped forward and ran a scan with his Omni-tool. Hm, gotta hand off my weapons.

"He's clear."

"If you're looking for weapons… you're doing a pretty bad job," I remarked.

"I don't care about your weapons. You can't be too careful with dead Spectres. Could be anyone wearing your face," Aria answered, still not turning.

"So, I hear you're who I should ask if I had questions." Aria then turned. She had some markings. A black stripe along her chin, a pair of arcs between her eyes, and a line that looks… huh, like a text bracket on her cheek.

"Depends on the questions." I was permitted to step up to the same level.

"You run Omega?"

Aria laughed. She turned back again and held her arms out wide. Bathing herself in the light of the pillar, and her back shaded.

"I am Omega," she proclaimed. A dramatic flair. She turned back to me. "You already know that. And you need more. Everyone needs something, and they all come to me. I'm the boss, CEO, Queen, if you're feeling dramatic." She moved to her couch and sat down, one leg crossed over the other, leaning back. "It doesn't matter. Omega has no titled ruler and only one rule." Aria gave a prideful grin. "Don't fuck with Aria."

"Nice, simple, easy to remember," I remarked. She gestured for me to sit. So I did.

"If you forget, someone will remind you."

"Then I toss your sorry ass out the nearest airlock," one of the Batarians added. I was sitting on an entirely different arm of the couch, so she turned her head to her right.

"I'll admit curiosity, but I doubt whatever you desire will matter much to Omega."

"I came here for recruits. Got dossiers on three people. Hoping you might be able to tell me more about them, where to find them. Mordin Solus, but we already know where to find him." I began.

"The Salarian doctor? Hm. You might have some difficulty getting to him. He's in the middle of a quarantined plague zone trying to find a cure."

"There's a plague here?" I asked, surprised.

"Yes, but it's securely locked down. Either everyone inside will die, and I'll send some humans, they're surprisingly immune, to clean it out, kill torch it, and start over. Or Mordin will cure it and it'll be business as usual. I always liked Mordin, by the way. He's as likely to heal you as he is to shoot you," Aria gave a strange smirk.

"You know him? What can you tell me about him?"

"Ex-STG. That's obvious. Brilliant and dangerous. Just don't get him talking. He never shuts up," she kept the smirk. "You really want in, I'll have someone tell a guard to let you take a shuttle, let you in."

"Alright, so, Archangel. I'm looking for him too."

"Ha! You and half of Omega. Except unlike you, they all want him dead." I let out a whistle.

"Tired of his vigilantism?"

"If you want to call it that. He thinks he's fighting on the side of good. Omega doesn't have a good side. Everything he does pisses someone off, and it's caught up to him."

"I think he and I will get along great. You got a bone to pick with him?"

"No, he's been smart enough to leave me alone. So, I don't care. But you'll make some enemies teaming up with him. Fair warning."

"Ah I'd probably just piss them all off sooner or later," I shrugged.

"If you want Archangel, it'll have to be right now, not just sooner. Gangs found his hideout. And he's got the Blood Pack, Blue Suns, and Eclipse all working together to bring him down. He's cornered, but from what I hear, they're having… trouble, finishing him off. They'll hire anyone with a gun to help. Recruiting in a private room, just over there."

"Shit," I murmured. "Then I'll need to wrap this up quick. Can you tell me if Zaeed Massani is in Afterlife right now?"

"Massani? He just stepped out for a piss. Should be back here any moment now, but he might be a bit annoyed. Looks like Casius just finished his turn." I turned back to see that the Turian who had been getting… treated earlier was shuddering, and then an Asari came up from underneath the table. Classy.

"Oi! You finally fucking done?" a gruff, older voice called out from behind.

"Hey, Zaeed!" Aria shouted to him.

"Fuck you want, beautiful? Willing to let me break Omega's number one rule?"

"Not a chance. You got a Spectre's attention," she gestured her head to me.

"Wot?" he asked, an English accent showing itself. "Oh, Shepard, right?" he made his way up the stairs. "Sure, you couldn't have arrived thirty minutes from now? I'm- I was about to be in the middle of someone." The man had heavy scars on the right side of his face, and his right eye was faded, blind in that eye. He was wearing heavy yellow armor and had a Vindicator on his back.

"Sorry, Zaeed. One of our other recruits is in trouble, and I'd rather have as many guns as I can get."

"I'll be fighting with a stiffy, but I won't turn down a good fight either. Two conditions. One, Illusive fuck tell you about our deal?"

"Only that you had one. Figured credits."

"Not entirely. We'll talk about it on the ship. Second condition, after that, I get to come back here and finish with Veli."

"Works for me," I shrugged.

"Then let's get a fucking move on."

"Thanks for the information, Aria. Sounds like I don't have much time to waste."

"You have all the time in the world. Archangel? Not so much." I stood and made my way down the steps. Miranda and Jacob ready, and we moved down to the private room indicated.

"To save you the breath, Shepard, I'll follow your orders. It's what I'm paid for," Zaeed stated.

"Got a helmet?"

"Not unless you want me to waste time and go back to my place here. Besides, it'll be good for them to recognize me," Zaeed shrugged. Fair enough. For now, at least. A Batarian in Blue Suns armor was standing outside the private room.

"Hear you're recruiting."

"Hm-hm. Why don't you step inside?" he stood aside, and the door opened. Inside was another Blue Suns Batarian at a console, with a Freelance standing in front of him. Older, outdated armor, weapons don't look too high quality. The Blue Suns armor is only decent because they can afford decent standard issue armor. It's comparable to most militaries in fact.

"You'll get paid when the job's done, just like everyone else. Next!" the merc called out as the Freelance left. "Hm…" he hummed, intrigued, nodding his head. Eying over us. "You four look like you could do some real damage. You kill for that N7?"

"You could say that…" It's not a lie. You need combat experience before you can be commended.

"Should consider joining up with the Suns officially after this. So, looking for a good fight?"

"A fight against Archangel."

"Good. Standard fee is five-hundred creds each. Paid when the job's done. You die, your friends don't collect your share. You need your own weapons and armor, but you got that covered. And this doesn't make you a member of the Blue Suns, Eclipse, or the Blood Pack. For this, you are a freelancer. Period. Any questions?"

"Where's it at?"

"His base of operations. That's all I can tell you. But we'll get you there."

"Guessing we'll get the plan once we're there?"

"Yeah."

"Guess we're ready then."

"Good. Just head to the transport depot outside the club. Main door, turn right. There're several shuttles ferrying freelancers out. One of our boys will take you from there."

* * *

 **Archangel**

Not sure how much more I can take. Stims can only keep one going for so long. I haven't gotten much time to get any food or water either. I'm not wounded, not yet. But damn if I'm not tired. I leave used clips within reach, so I can use them again when they cool, but I'm due to be without any to use sooner or later. Helps I've put so many mods into this rifle. I can get more out of each clip. Still, I have an AR on hand for when they get a bit closer. I'll make them pay for it, but, doesn't seem like I have much to survive for. The whole team's dead.

Dad was right. About more than just what Shepard convinced me. I fought so hard not to listen. Every argument we had. Now I'm paying for it. Suppose there's just one last loose end to tie up. There was a small break in the shooting, in them trying to cross this bridge. I dialed my father.

"Hello?" he answered. Bullets struck my cover again and I stood to return.

"Dad." I fired.

"Garrus?! Is that you? What's that noise?" he was concerned.

"Just a little target practice." He knew what I meant.

"Then call me back later," he demanded.

"I don't think I'll be able to do that. Too many targets," I stated. He paused.

"I see." his voice fell. I fired again.

"I just wanted to hear your voice. Know how retirement was treating you. You good?"

"I'm fine, forget about that."

"Listen, I don't have much time. I wanted to say… you were right. About a lot more than I gave you credit for. And I'm sorry we butted heads so much." I loaded another clip and fired again. If it wasn't for this firefight, I'd probably be choking up.

"I said forget about that. These targets you're practicing on. They're moving fast?"

"So far, not fast enough. But they're learning."

"How are your clips?"

"You know how it is. Could always use a few more."

"Work with what you've got. Then, you don't stop pulling that trigger till it clicks, son," Dad ordered. Not angrily. Almost… pleadingly. I loaded a new clip. "No matter how bad things are falling apart around you, as long as you have at least one bullet left, you can get the job done. Understand?" I put my eye back down the scope. A body, someone wearing the N7 logo. Hm, fate playing a cruel joke. I aimed the scope to see the face of this man. This bastard who killed an N7 and took his body. He dies first. Dad was still talking.

"You finish up what you have to do there, and then you come home to Palaven. We have a lot to sort out."

Impossible. The face of the man wearing that N7? A man who earned it.

Shepard. He was at the far end of where the new mercs were always coming from before they went to the front. He was looking straight at me. Couldn't recognize me, not with my helmet. I need to keep his cover. Even if I'm wrong, and going crazy, well, better to just die hoping, right? I swapped to a concussive round and shot him in the torso. He reeled back, likely feeling like he just got punched in the gut, and dove down out of my line of fire.

"Garrus?"

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry. Thanks, Dad. For everything. I have to go now. Don't worry about me." My mandibles flared into a grin. "My odds just got a whole lot better." Dad took a deep breath.

"Give em hell, son."


	7. Archangel

**Commander John Shepard**

Damn kid doesn't know it yet, but I saved his life. Trying to sign up as a freelance with a sorry excuse for a gun he paid fifty credits for and fell apart with a few light slaps. Not even any armor. Thinking his experience on the streets of Omega was enough to count as combat experience. Wonder how many others like that signed on. The shuttle ride took about fifteen minutes, and so far, no one had recognized Zaeed. He passed it off as the fact that so far, all we had seen were 'fucking grunts.' We touched down in what appeared to be a residential area. Likely empty of civilians by now. Mercs may not care about their lives, but they wouldn't want them getting in the way either. Another Blue Suns Batarian was waiting at the base of a set of stairs leading out from this… shuttle parking bay. If you can call it that.

"Bout time they sent someone who looks like they can actually fight," he remarked. He had a red stripe in the middle of his face, vertical between the eyes. "They tell you what we're up against?"

"I know Archangel's a marksman, but that's from reputation. Not recruiter," I remarked.

"Ha, marksman. Understatement of the fucking year. He's holed up in a building at the end of the boulevard over there. He's got a superior position, and the only way in is over a very exposed bridge. It's a killing ground." Hm, need to either get really lucky or find some way to signal that we're trying to help. "But he's getting tired. Making mistakes. We'll have him soon enough."

"So, what's the plan?"

"We have a small team waiting to infiltrate the hideout, but we need to draw his fire before they can move in. You'll be on the distraction team. Straight over the bridge to keep him busy while the infiltration team sneaks in behind him."

"Thought there wasn't another way in," Zaeed added gruffly.

"They only got over thanks to more distractions. Now they need another, so they can actually move up. Tarak used a gunship to keep him busy."

"Not even a gunship took him down?" I exclaimed.

"No fucking idea how. Tarak was absolutely pissed when he returned. I wasn't about to ask how."

"So, a damn suicide run?" I raised a brow.

"Pretty much," the Batarian shrugged. "Unlike the others though, looks like you lot have quality gear. Probably make it. Head up to the boulevard, and get to the third barricade. Talk to Sergeant Cathka. He'll tell you when."

"Alright, we'll head over."

"Good. Just watch yourself, even along the boulevard. He's killed dozens back there already." I let out a whistle. The dossier wasn't doing his marksmanship any justice. Damn impressive. We started moving up the stairs. EDI entered our comms.

"Shepard, I have scanned the area, but I am unable to plot any other paths to Archangel."

"So, no other choice," I muttered under my breath. "We'll try to do a bit of sabotage, go from there. I doubt he'd trust it, but try and hail him. Tell him we're trying to help, describe us."

"Understood." We approached the first barricade, and I saw my first Vorcha. It reminded me of some sort of reptilian bat. Without wings, at least. Large, sharp teeth, rows of them, skin is clearly rough and even has spikes at the elbows and side of the head. Large eyes, bent legs, and, unfortunately not many clothes. Just a bandolier and something that looks like a diaper. Covers only the ass and groin. The Vorcha stared at us and hissed. The barricade had a few mercs taking potshots at the apartment down the way, I saw a blue helmet at a balcony, a sniper in hand. Couldn't make out many details, not from this distance. And wouldn't be able to communicate with him like this either. He sees me, I'm sure of it.

A round struck me in the chest, punching right through my shields. The force of it was like a hammer and I reeled back, grunting, then staggered to the side, out of the line of fire.

"Commander! Are you alright?" Miranda asked. Hm, not sure if that's surprising or not, having spent two years on me. Wait… I patted my hands around the impact point. There wasn't a hole. My armor was intact, but… dented.

"Bullet didn't penetrate, but, feels like someone just slammed a hammer into my chest."

"Strange… sounds like a concussive round," Miranda murmured.

"Has to be. A bullet would have at least lodged itself in the armor, not just leave a dent," Jacob added.

"No way in hell that was an accident," Zaeed remarked.

"Strange indeed." I stood straight again, taking a deep breath. The pain was already going away. "Come on, let's keep moving." We passed through a door to see Eclipse officers waiting and sitting. Salarians, all of them.

"As the first wave goes in, the infiltration team will attempt to take Archangel by surprise. I don't expect much from the freelancers. When they fail, we're up next. Light mechs go in first. If that's not enough, we send in the heavy. Be prepared," one of the Salarians, one with a red skin tone ordered.

"You the Eclipse leader?" I asked, leaning against a wall.

"Figure that out by yourself?" he raised a brow. "I'm Jaroth, and yes, I run Omega's Eclipse. You need something, Freelancer?" he certainly wasn't pleased to be talking to me.

"Just curious what Eclipse's problem with Archangel is."

"We control twenty percent of Omega and then he comes along and mucks up our operations. Eclipse is well oiled, Omega is not. We're already constantly battling the system here, and he is too much. He's killed some of our best operatives, and one of them was my brother, so I am going to end this problem," Jaroth growled.

"Good luck to ya," I remarked and made to move. I noticed that Miranda and Jacob had wandered a bit. And Jacob pocketed a data pad off a counter. We left the eclipse 'base' into an empty hallway.

"Seems the Mercs are planning to gang up on Aria. Thought you'd like to have that, decide to tell her or not," Jacob explained his actions.

"Tell her. You don't have to like her, I know she's a beauty and a bitch, but she at least keeps Omega stable. She leaves the people be, so long as they don't interfere with her and her shit. The Eclipse and the Suns? They see a fucking goldmine in protection rackets and cheap labor. Don't even get me started on the fucking blood pack. At least with the others, buying protection would actually mean protection and safety. Those bastards will look at you as a meal or a quick rape no matter how many credits you throw at their face. If none of that convinces you, she'll sure as hell give you something for it," Zaeed argued.

"You make a point I can't ignore. Fine, I'll throw the info her way later," I relented. Zaeed just nodded, and we came to two doors at the end of the hallway. The door on the left had been hastily labeled "mech storage." Seems like a good time for some sabotage. They did have a heavy after all. There were rows of LOKI mechs folded up like the old Battle Droids in Star Wars, and a YMIR mech towering, offline, ahead.

"EDI, how do I shut this thing down permanently quietly? No! Wait! Can I mess with its Friend/Foe targeting ID?"

"You can. There is a button on the left side of its neck. If you press it, it will link to the nearest Omni-tool. I will use the connection to hack through its firewall and re-write its programming."

"Sounds good." I found and pressed the button.

"So, who's this EDI? She sounds pretty?" Zaeed asked.

"She's an AI," Jacob answered.

"Huh. Go fucking figure," Zaeed shrugged.

"Hack complete. When activated, the Heavy Mech will now attack Eclipse," EDI confirmed. We left the storage, and the next door was a crossroads between another pair of doors. One door had "Blood Pack! Keep out!" Painted in red, likely blood along the door. And with their skull symbol as well. I'll leave that be. The other door led back to the barricades, and we opened the door just in time to see a Vorcha take a round through his skull, virtually turning the upper half into red mist as the body fell off the barricade and to the floor. Another Vorcha was taking cover. Staying safe, we kept our heads down and kept moving. I could see Archangel and his rifle a bit better now. Just enough to make out armor color, a navy blue.

"Oi, that door, there. Should have Blue Suns leaders. Tarak knows me. Might be able to learn something," Zaeed suggested.

"Friend of yours?"

"Hmph, no fucking Sun is a friend of mine," he growled. I glanced back. Strangely, I noticed the tattoo on his neck. It was their logo.

"Then what's with the tat?"

"Long story. Part of the arrangement," he grumbled. So, later then. A freelance at the barricade lost his head as we got moving. He's making these shots while being shot at. We went through the doors Zaeed pointed out. Some Suns were standing guard inside but didn't care enough to stop us. We followed the short hall into another room with Suns lieutenants looking over a holo map. One obviously with tactical information.

"I don't want excuses! Tell Cathka to get that gunship working, or he'll be next over that bridge!" a Batarian shouted. "And somebody get me those damn blueprints! Now! And get these freelancers out of here. I don't have time for this."

"Tarak, what's eating your ass?" Zaeed piped up. Tarak stopped and stared him down.

"Zaeed?" he was surprised. "Since when do you work for so little?"

"Credits aren't the goal for this job. And since when are you such a goddamn madman?"

"It's Archangel. This guy's gonna kill me. Almost did already," Tarak muttered.

"That bad, huh?"

"Worse. Look, Zaeed. I gotta deal with this shit. You have questions, just let Jentha answer them," Tarak calmed down. "It's good to see you, Massani. Who knows, maybe you'll be the one to solve this. I'll throw in extra if you do."

"Anything's possible," Zaeed shrugged. Hm, smug bastard. A human woman with dark brown hair stepped up.

"Good thing you know him. Tarak hates needing to hire freelancers. Doesn't trust anyone outside the Suns," she remarked. Must be Jentha.

"You don't say?" Zaeed gave some sarcasm.

"First off, what's the backup plan for the infiltration? If it goes wrong?" I asked.

"After Tarak shoots any Freelancers still alive? Eclipse and Blood Pack take their shots in that order. Then us. I suggested we work together more closely, but he just doesn't trust them. Our go will have the gunship back in working order. But it won't come to that. Archangel's good, but can't hold out that long. Been in there over a day already."

Yeah, whoever this guy is, everything I'm hearing confirms what I already know. I need this guy on my team.

"Can't die soon enough if you ask me," Jentha added.

"Sounds personal," I prodded.

"He went after Tarak in his home. Almost got him. Tarak's been paranoid ever since. And even though I was there with Tarak when it happened, he second guesses everything I do. Less personal, we worry every job is a trap now. Does he know about the meeting? Will this shipment disappear? How many losses this time? List goes on."

"Thanks, we'll go see Cathka then," I nodded. Jentha returned the nod and returned to the holo table. We took our leave.

"Good, three different waves. Keeps them separated. Let's see if we can't hurt that gunship," I spoke over the comms. We got back to the barricades, kept our heads down, and sprinted across to a large garage that had the gunship waiting. And a humanoid working on repairing it. Must be Cathka. Sparks from his welding tool were flying out as he repaired some damage near the back. Under one of the wings. "Cathka?" He stopped, turned to face us, and pressed a button on the side of his helmet, removing the tint it had taken to protect his eyes from the light of the wielder. A Batarian, of course.

"Sergeant Cathka. Ah… Must be the group Salkie mentioned. You're just in time."

"Salkie?"

"The one who spoke to you when you landed. The four of you stand out from the other Freelancers. Anyway… the Infiltration team is about to give us the signal. Won't be long now. Any questions?" he asked as he set the welding tool on the table. Hm… it's one of those wielding blades. Strange design, not meant for small repairs, but for when part of a large piece of metal gets damaged. He lit himself a cigarette

"Just one. How the hell did Archangel ground that?"

"Believe it or not? The best damn shot I've ever seen. Not only did he shoot the perfect fucking spot in the wing, but it ruptured a fuel line and shredded the wing before the safeties cut it off from the rest. This entire wing is basically brand fucking new. No idea how Tarak managed to land the damn thing. Just a bit longer, and it'll be attached securely." There was a pinging from a console. He turned his back to us, down at it. "Check. Bravo team - go, go, go!" a group of Freelancers ran out towards the barricade.

"Archangel's got quite a surprise waiting for him," he chuckled and darkened his visor. I nabbed the wielder before he began to look for it. His back turned again. I turned it on.

"You and him both." I jabbed him with it right in the center of the back, taking a hand to cup it over his mouth and suppress the cry of pain. His legs went limp, his spinal cord was severed and probably melting from the heat if it was not evaporating. I lowered him to the ground, then used the wielder to slit his throat. We then ran out to the bridge, weapons out and ready. Archangel was already taking shots at Freelancers. His first target, one with a grenade launcher. We immediately opened fire on the other freelancers, taking them by surprise, putting bullets in the back of their heads. Just like that, all the mercs on the bridge were dead. Now to take care of infiltration. Archangel didn't shoot at us, and we ran towards the large two-story building. One merc was working on an Explosive device, so we took him down before he realized what was going on. We ran up to the second level, where a merc had managed to get to the door without being shot, but it was locked. He was trying to cut it open. I knocked on the door.

"Archangel? We're on your side. Mind letting us in?" The interface went green, and I opened the door, stepping through with the others. He was staring down the scope of his rifle, towards the inside. Seems we missed one. The Turian held up a single talon, signaling for us to wait. I peeked out towards the main room. A human slowly poked his head out around a support column, and his head turned into mist. Archangel stood up, rocked his neck, and reached a hand up to remove his helmet. It came off. Holy fucking shit. My jaw dropped, and I froze. He set his helmet down on a crate and sat down, partially resting on his rifle as well. Same markings, same visor, same eyes. It was fucking him.

"Shepard. I thought you were dead."

"Garrus fucking Vakarian!" I exclaimed, laughing. I stepped forward, leaned down, and wrapped my arms around the bastard. "What the hell are you doing here, buddy?" One of Garrus' arms patted me on the shoulder, partially returning the hug.

"Just keeping my skills sharp," he grinned. "A little target practice."

"You good? Got plenty of Medi-gel, clips," I began.

"Thanks. I've been better, but spirits is it good to see a friendly face. Killing mercs is hard work. Especially on my own."

"But what brought you to Omega?" Garrus sighed.

"I never forgot what you taught me, but the bureaucracy on the Citadel only got worse. I wasn't putting innocents at risk anymore, but they were letting known criminals walk because of a bought judge, threatened jury, worse. Figured I could do more good on my own, so came out here." I nodded.

"Zaeed, Jacob, Miranda, keep an eye out. They're probably trying to figure out what to make of this, let us know when they're moving." They got in positions overlooking the bridge. "Sorry to hear that, Garrus. So, I gotta know. How'd you manage to piss off all the major merc gangs in Terminus?"

"Wasn't easy. I really had to work on it," he joked. "Amazing they teamed up for this though. That really surprised me.

"And, Archangel. How'd you get that name?"

"Locals gave it to me. For all my good deeds," he shrugged. "But," he chuckled. "You? Garrus. Please."

"Asking for first names with the guy you nailed in the chest?" I teased.

"Oh please, you know damn well that was a concussive round. No harm done," he retorted. "Didn't want the mercs getting suspicious of you."

"Uh huh, sure," I teased further. He gave me that look. The, 'we are going to have a competition later and I will prove it to you, you bastard,' kind of look.

"If I wanted to take your head off, I could've. Besides, you were taking your sweet time. I had to get you moving." We shared a brief laugh. Just like old times. "My turn for a question. How?"

"Long and short start the same way. I died, body was found, restored over two years with an ass load of credits. I only just woke up a couple days ago." His mandibles flared. "I'd be more than happy to give you the long version, but it should wait until we're out of here. We have shuttles, but not sure it'll be safe for them to come down just yet."

"It won't, you're right. Any hints to their backup plan? The bridge has saved my life by funneling those witless idiots into scope, but if not for you they might well have had me here."

"Eclipse with mechs first, then Blood Pack. Not sure about their plan. Then Blue Suns, but I ensured that gunship wouldn't be fully repaired. Even if they do fly it, still got a big hole in the side of the wing, ain't secure. Plus, I got a missile launcher."

"Spirits damned miracle," Garrus breathed. "Hold position, last through the waves, call that shuttle. That's my suggestion."

"Best we can do. I'll have it on standby, waiting somewhere nearby. Want it to have the doc?"

"Won't turn it down. Got nicked a few times. Think they're just flesh wounds, but I haven't had the time to check either. The fact I've yet to drop dead from them makes me feel a bit better."

"Good. EDI, I know you heard all that. Make it so," I ordered.

"You're giving me more and more questions," Garrus murmured.

"I promise to answer em all after this. So, ready to kick some ass?" Garrus' mandibles went wider, a bigger grin.

"Just like old times."

"Mechs coming over the Barricade," Jacob called out. Garrus and I nodded to one another and ran out to the balcony overlooking. We lined up and opened fire. Aiming for the head. Miranda using a Phalanx pistol, Jacob using an Avenger, Zaeed with his Vindicator, and myself with my Mattock. Garrus still with his sniper. The mechs moved slow, meaning they were easy targets. So, some Eclipse joined the next wave personally. They moved faster, but Salarians have large heads. Though not all of them were Salarians, so many of us were shooting, and the numbers not large enough, that it didn't matter much. Jacob's and Miranda's biotics helped slow them down and leave others more vulnerable. Warps helped counter the barriers of any Asari who tried their luck. A cargo lift started to bring out the YMIR.

"Shit, heavy mech," Garrus called out.

"Don't worry about it. That problem will solve itself," I reassured. He gave me a confused sideways glance. "Just save your ammo, do any checks you need to do." The mech touched down. It started to march towards us, but then it detected the Eclipse who jumped down to join it. It turned and opened fire on the surprise operatives. Garrus chuckled and leaned back a bit. We just waited until enough mercs had thrown themselves at it that it finally started to go down, it's shielding not able to recover in time.

"Ah, seems Jaroth is going across himself. Mistake," Garrus clicked his tongue. He started to run, and I fired a burst from the Mattock to take down his shields, while Garrus followed up with a round straight to his skull. Easy.

"Skills haven't dulled, Shepard. Good to see you kicking ass again."

"I aim to please," I gave a mocking bow.

"Not to mention I rather like seeing Jaroth's corpse on the ground now. One less lackey for Jona Sederis. Been hunting him for months."

"What got you onto him?"

"He's been shipping tainted Eezo all over Citadel space. Half the goods I seized back at C-sec came from his team here." I nodded, and we looked back at the barricades. There were more of them, additional protection. But no one was going over yet. An explosion shook the ground. An alarm blaring.

"The hell?" Jacob questioned.

"Damn it, had to use their brains sooner or later. They breached the lower level. Fortunately, there are some blast doors down there that can be shut. Block it off all over again. You go do that, I'll hang here."

"Like hell, I'm leaving you alone again. You three, down there, close those blast doors."

"Yes, Commander," Lawson answered. Once alone, Garrus spoke up.

"They don't seem to be Alliance. And I wouldn't expect the Alliance to ever hire Zaeed Massani."

"That, my friend, is because they're not Alliance."

"So, who are they?" I sighed.

"I hate myself for it, but uh… it was Cerberus that brought me back." That made the Turian's eyes go wide. That surprised him.

"After all the trouble we caused them?"

"Same thought crossed my mind. Problem is, you know the Collectors?"

"Yeah, heard rumors of deals with them on the station. Left them alone, for now at least."

"Well, they've taken to kidnapping entire Human Colonies. Hundreds of thousands of people, Garrus. I've gotten proof myself. Making it worse, seems they're working for the Reapers."

"Hm, that changes things, doesn't it?" Garrus hummed.

"Yeah, makes it something I just can't ignore. I'm playing along, but I haven't been taking orders. Or going easy on any of the Cerberus loyalists. They're giving me money, intel, a ship, and dossiers on people to recruit against the Collectors. Archangel was one of those names, and I already planned to track you and the others down."

"They should be easy to find. I know Kaidan went back to the Alliance, don't expect Liara to really hide anywhere, and Tali's with the Fleet."

"Believe it or not, I actually stumbled across her on Freedom's Progress, a Colony I was investigating for that proof I mentioned."

"You saw her? What were Quarians doing on a Human colony?"

"Looking for a Pilgrim. Tali would have followed me, but had a mission to complete for the Fleet first."

"It'll be good to see her again. You two… reveal anything to one another?" he gave a smug grin.

"You all suspected it, didn't you?"

"Kaidan and Ashley picked up on it first. Liara and I took a while longer," he chuckled.

"Ugh… yes and no, seems like. But we agreed that we both needed to have a bit of a talk next time we see one another."

"Just talk? Hmph. If she wasn't Quarian, I'd have some serious doubts about talk being the only thing that happens."

"Shut it, Jackass. We're not out of this mess yet, haven't saved your life just yet." Garrus chuckled more. Then we heard something. We looked down to see sparks coming from the door to the lower level.

"Squad, get me a sitrep. We got hostiles breaching the door to the main floor," I ordered.

"Just closed the last shutter. A group must have gotten past us while we were working on them," Miranda answered. "We're on our way back."

"Understood." I turned back to Garrus. "So, you in?"

"You really need to even ask? To hell and back." Damn, it felt good to hear that. That's the second moment since I came back that it honestly felt good to be brought back to life. I took a hand and patted his back.

"To hell and back, buddy." I readied my rifle, and the door flew open. Vorcha, which we immediately began tearing apart. They can't regenerate their brain. Still, there were quite a few of them. Then a Krogan burst through, running for the stairs. And I saw the flare of bullets being reflected by a barrier.

"Damn it, Garm. Big Krogan bastard."

"Kill the Vorcha, I'll wait by the door," I suggested. Garrus nodded and kept on working as Garm ran to the door, already beating against it like a battering ram. I sealed my helmet and waited for the door to be knocked down. Garm stormed through, roared, and then I launched myself under him, my shotgun placed right under his chin. I pulled the trigger without a word. His barrier wouldn't help him here. The Eviscerator proved its namesake right there, as the Krogan's head was…. Well, eviscerated. Chunks of meat flying up and back down with bits of skull, and coating both my armor and visor in orange blood. The weight of the body started to collapse on me, but I shifted the weight to the side and it fell to the floor. I wiped my visor clean.

"That would have made Wrex proud," Garrus remarked. Zaeed, Miranda, and Jacob arrived and helped mop up the rest of the Vorcha, then regrouped with us upstairs. "This day just gets better and better. Starting to wonder if we should make a break for it. Tarak's got nothing we haven't- hear that?" A whirring noise outside. Glass broke, and a searchlight shone brightly through. My visor reacted, changing its tint to help me see, but it was still a moment of blindness. Enough for mercs to rappel through. One of them was Jentha. A burst from about a quarter of my clip broke through her shields and put a bullet through her skull while the others took care of the regular mercs. Next batch tried the ground floor. About eight of them. Two of them with missile launchers. Pinning two of us at a time. I readied my own once the last of them fell.

"Archangel!" Tarak shouted through the gunship's speakers as it flew up by the bridge balcony. Garrus' back was initially turned. Its chain gun was already spinning. Everyone dove towards cover, but I saw Garrus was too slow, a lack of energy getting to him. Bullets were impacting his armor. It seemed to be barely holding by the time he fell and pulled himself into cover. The bullets must not be too terribly strong, just a fuck ton of them so that normally, it wouldn't matter. The gunship lowered, and I had my chance. I got up and fired a missile, but Tarak had already done so himself. His rocket shot out, forcing Garrus to need to dive, but it was too fast and impacted right by him. Launching him away from the force, and he rolled onto his side. My missile impacted right on the cockpit, shattering it and sending glass all across Tarak's body, I'd suspect, and it crashed beneath us.

I ran over to my friend. There was blood. It was starting to pool. I rolled him onto his side. His right mandible was almost gone, paper thin almost, and a gash on his cheek and neck. His armor had clearly taken some damage. It was still mostly intact, though pockmarked by bullet impacts. No telling how many actually broke through. We need Chakwas now.

"EDI! Get that fucking shuttle here right now! Make sure Chakwas is ready for urgent care!" I ordered. I started applying as much Medi-gel as I could. "Come on… come on… don't you dare fucking die on me, Vakarian. Don't you dare," I murmured to myself. His eyes shot open and he took a deep breath. He coughed, struggled to breathe. It was loud, difficult, pained breathing. "Come on, man! Stay with me. Look at me. Stay here with me. The shuttle is almost here, we'll patch you up. Come on, fight!" I urged. He reached for his rifle, trying to clutch it. "Shh… it's over, Garrus. You don't need it. It's over. Just focus on staying here with me. Ok?" He started to gurgle, so I rolled him over onto his left side. He vomited blood and bile.

"He's not gonna-" Zaeed began.

"Shut the fuck up!" I bellowed. "He'll fucking make it." His eyes were still open, he was breathing. That at least was a good sign. A shuttle soared down and touched down on the bridge, the door to our side opening. Bullets came out, striking the shuttle, but its shields wouldn't easily be brought down by small arms. "Help me carry him." Jacob and Miranda's biotics came to life as they lowered his weight, making it easier for us to quickly carry him down the stairs and to the shuttle. I made sure Zaeed brought Garrus' rifle. Chakwas was inside, waiting."

"My god, Garrus?" she exclaimed. She began her medical scan. Saying nothing more. She took a syringe with some sort of medication, uncapped it, and I helped take off some of the armor on Garrus' left arm, then rolled the arm over so she could get at soft skin on the inside of the arm. His breathing started to slow, relax. But it was still more like wheezing. She got a respirator and put it over his face. Making sure he had plenty of oxygen. Quickly, there was nothing more that I could do.

Just wait and hope that Chakwas can save him.


	8. Shitfaced

**Commander John Shepard**

It's been about a full day since we found Garrus. And he's still unconscious on the medical bed. I haven't left his side since the moment Chakwas allowed me to enter the med-bay. The side of his face that took the most damage was bandaged, and he was without a shirt to treat wounds to his torso. Some bullet wounds from either the gunship or just over a day of fighting, His right arm, shoulder, and part of his chest were heavily bandaged as well. So long as he pulled through, Chakwas expected at least a strong recovery, given time. Some of the procedure had involved mild cybernetics, but largely just to help set and protect bones, and also to ensure he'd still be able to use his right mandible and his jaw. Fortunately, his vitals were still steady, and Chakwas was working at her desk, just in case. The door opened. It was Miranda.

"Co-" she stopped herself with a deep breath. "Permission to speak?" I noticed Chakwas chuckle, giving me an amused glance.

"Granted."

"Dr. Chakwas believes that Vakarian will make a full recovery. You've been in here for over a day, and Professor Solus is still in a plague zone. We should really-"

"If he's STG, he can handle himself long enough for Garrus to wake up. If I was wounded like he was, I know damn well he'd do exactly what I'm doing. I'm staying right here until he's conscious," I waved her off. Grumbling to herself, she left.

"Your loyalty to your friends is admirable, Shepard. But try not to make too much of an enemy," Chakwas cautioned.

"I'll warm up to her when she can look at the atrocities Cerberus has committed and not believe they were acceptable. Till then, she can go fuck herself. Same goes for TIM. And I really don't care if EDI passes that along to him," I ended a bit louder and clearer. The AI remained silent.

The door opened again, but this time, a man. The mess sergeant. He had come in a few times before to give me some small meals. I had taken some of the time here to talk to Rupert Gardner. He used to be a colonist but lost his family to a Batarian raid some years back. That led him to Cerberus. Curiously, he wasn't seeming to suggest that the Batarians get a taste of their own medicine. Not suggesting we start raiding them or worse. Putting a stop to it, absolutely. But not a genocide. Granted, I hadn't asked him in that detail, and he hadn't explicitly stated. He didn't bat an eye at my dedication to a friend, even seemed respectful about it. What he had for me now, was a simple BLT. I thanked him, and he left. I ate in silence and continued to wait.

About two hours later, there was a groan.

"By the spirits," he murmured as he tried to sit up, a hand going right to his head.

"Easy, buddy. Easy. Took quite a hit."

"Shepard? Good, good. That wasn't a dream."

"Need me to pinch you to make sure?" I joked.

"I'm in enough pain as it is, I think I know I'm awake now. Even try to do that and you'll lose a finger."

"Ooh, someone's grumpy." We both chuckled, and I took a deep breath.

"Damn glad you're alright. Had me really worried there," I almost rested a hand on his shoulder before I remembered it was the bandaged one.

"And I'm damn glad you're back. So, am I crazy, or did I see Chakwas in that shuttle?"

"Hello, Garrus. It's good to see you again," the doctor spoke up.

"You too, Doctor. Thanks for patching me up. Any other familiar faces on board?"

"Joker."

"Hm, makes sense. He blamed himself pretty badly. Doubt he'd pass up a second chance. Oh, hm, sorry. Wasn't trying to sour the mood. Can I get a mirror? How bad is it?"

"Bah, you were always an ugly bastard. Slap on some face paint, no one will ever notice."

"Ha, damn it," he laughed then groaned in pain. "Don't make me laugh. My face is barely holding together as it is. Ah well, I suppose it's for the best," Garrus feigned disappointment. "Everyone was always ignoring you, and hitting on me. Time for you to get a fair shot. Especially when Tali comes back, she won't need me distracting her. Who knows, maybe those new scars of yours will get her going a bit more," Garrus teased.

"Oh, speaking of those scars, Shepard, I need to talk to you about those later. Tonight?"

"Sure thing."

"Frankly, Shepard, I'm a bit more worried about how you're holding up. I know you remember everything Cerberus did, just… mental strain, I guess."

"Well, if I don't look at myself in the mirror each morning, that helps," I muttered. "Like I said, Collectors. I've made a deal with the devil, I know. But if I'm waltzing into hell, I want people I trust."

"You understand your plan means having me waltz, whatever the hell that is, through hell too, right? Heh, just like old times." Garrus looked up to Chakwas. "Doc am I good to walk around?"

"I'd prefer you had more bed rest, but I'll settle for you just walking around the ship. But stay on the ship, is that clear?"

"I wanted to give him a tour of the ship anyway, and hell, today I'm due to tell the crew just what Cerberus is responsible. Wouldn't hurt to have another eyewitness," I shrugged. "Probably will take up the rest of the day."

"Does the crew not know about any of it? About what Cerberus is responsible for?" Garrus asked, surprised.

"Seems like they don't. For the most part at any rate. Miranda Lawson, the woman who was with me, is apparently a top operative in the organization. She's loyal. She at least knows about the attack on the Idenna but believes it was justified and exaggerated. For whatever reason, fucked if I know. She seems to believe that what we saw were… I don't know, lies and tricks or something other than the truth. Jacob Taylor on the other hand, he doesn't seem to really know and isn't particularly loyal, to begin with. Then there are the others, like Ken and Gabby in engineering, who only signed up after my death because they believed the Reaper threat, and Cerberus tapped them just for this."

"And what about you, Doctor? Or Joker?" Garrus added.

"Joker and I only signed on because they told us that Shepard was coming back. With evidence. We took the risk. I know Engineer Adams received an offer, and he and I discussed it, but he simply didn't trust Cerberus. He believed it to be a lie and a trap. I don't blame him," Chakwas answered.

"Neither do I. Also, uh… I want to talk to you later, about contacting mom."

"Of course."

"That'll be a helluva awkward call. And it's a call I'm going to need to make myself," Garrus murmured. "Are there clothes for me?"

"Just on the bed there. Shirt and pants," Chakwas pointed.

"We'll buy some for you before we leave Omega. I need to buy some too. Took most of mine and burned it."

"It had the logo, didn't it?" Garrus chuckled.

"The whole ship did at first. Until I complained and refused to move till they got rid of them all. I only budged to let Miranda keep the one in her quarters to finger herself to and probably stick a dildo on, pretend she's sucking off TIM or some shit," I remarked.

"TIM?"

"All of that and that's the part you question?" Chakwas exclaimed with a chuckle.

"Yeah, I'm a child, I know. And I don't care. TIM. Acronym for the pretentious code name the head of Cerberus has. The Illusive Man," I shrugged.

"By the spirits, Shepard. Did being dead for two years change nothing about you?" Garrus laughed.

"Mentally? Probably a little bit of existential shit I'll have to deal with once I don't have fucking Cerberus all over my mind. Physically? Cybernetic enhancements and what-not. Oh yeah, and I'm an artificial biotic now."

"Wait, what? How the hell did they manage that? And why didn't I see you use any? Are you just feeding me crap?"

"Not this time. Some sort of Eezo pocket in my skull. Haven't used it because I haven't trained with it yet. No idea how to control it, and only two other biotics on board are Miranda and Jacob," I explained.

"Alright, I'm just going to get dressed before there are any more weird revelations," he grunted as he slowly moved to stand. Throwing the bed's covers off of him. He still had the bottom of his under suit on. Chakwas and I both left the room to allow him privacy. He emerged just moments later. The crew had just finished their lunch, aside from a straggler or two, and had left the mess.

"Sleeper pods to the right, just like the old Normandy. One's yours, and the end of the hall isn't crew quarters anymore, but the main gun battery. I remember how much time you spent toying with the Mako's gun, so I'll make sure you're clear to toy with that too."

"What's the ship armed with?"

"The main weapons are dual Javelin Disruptor torpedoes. They converge and are meant to detonate together at the same spot, same time. Causes a giant equivalent to those biotic detonations Liara and Kaidan occasionally created."

"Not bad, not bad," Garrus hummed. "But I caught wind of something better before heading off to Omega. Remember Sovereign's main gun?"

"How couldn't I? That shit was unbelievable."

"Well," Garrus whispered. "The Hierarchy reverse engineered it. There's a smaller version we call the Thanix. They're keeping it as quiet as they can while trying to spread it around their fleet. And tipping off the Alliance to it." I let out a whistle.

"That would sure as hell come in handy against a Collector ship," I mused. "What are the odds of you being able to arrange something?"

"No favor in the world would get me access to that tech for free. But, if this Illusive Man decided to fork over some credits…"

"See if we can't get it done in a Turian shipyard. Let them supply and install it. I'd rather keep TIM from getting the tech himself as long as we can." Garrus nodded. "So, returning to the tour. Where my quarters used to be is the XO's office. Miranda has that position at TIM's behest." I led him behind the elevator. "Bathrooms are in this hall, general crew quarters are port side, port observation has a library, and starboard has a lounge and bar. I haven't used it just yet. Deck four is just engineering and cargo, you don't really need to bother with that, deck five is shuttle bay and cargo. Nothing interesting there. Not even the armory."

"Where else would they even have the armory?"

"Glad to see I'm not alone in that annoyance. Idiots put it on deck two by the CIC."

"...Why?" Garrus questioned.

"No clue. Jacob runs it, you may enjoy taking a peek at what weapons we have in stock. I did. Here, we'll go up, see Joker, I'll show you the armory, then, my quarters on deck one."

"Sounds fine to me. I assume we're still docked?"

"Had to move a bit, but yeah, still docked on Omega. The spot we had Aria apparently just reserves what's immediately important to her. Still, not far from it." Garrus nodded with a downward glance. There was something he wasn't saying, something eating at him. I'll need to try and find out. For the moment, we just got in the elevator and took it up.

"Elevator is a lot faster than the old Normandy," Garrus remarked.

"Thank Christ for that," I chuckled. Kelly was at her post and turned to see who it was. She gave a friendly smile and eyed Garrus.

"You must be Garrus Vakarian. I'm Yeoman Kelly Chambers. It's good to see you up and well."

"Er, thanks. That's a pleasant change from the chants of 'kill the Xeno scum,' last time I tangoed with Cerberus," Garrus replied. I can't tell if he tried to be friendly or not.

"Oh, I'm sorry you encountered the less tolerant members of this organization last time," she answered sadly. Garrus just turned to me with a brow raise. I just gave him the 'let's just move on,' look.

"Come on, big guy. I'm sure Joker's eager to see you. Let's not keep him waiting."

"Oh! I'm sorry, I forgot Joker was part of the old crew for a moment. I won't keep you. Maybe we'll talk later, Garrus. I'd love to learn more about you," she smiled. Does she… no, no one in Cerberus would be a xenophile, right? We just walked on.

"That was… uncomfortable," Garrus muttered.

"Yeah, that was, uh… a bit weird. I'm honestly not sure what to make of her yet. She's either naive or twisted. Don't know yet."

"Both is a possibility," Garrus suggested.

"Also true." By the time I finished that sentence, we had arrived at the cockpit. Joker's hat was leaning forwards, and there was light snoring. I stepped up and tapped him on the shoulder. He stirred.

"Huh?" he groggily turned and looked up. "Oh, hey Shepard," he yawned. "Sorry, seats really damn comfortable. Not like I'm needed right now anyway."

"It is still unwise to sleep while on duty, Mr. Moreau. Your services may be required if an emergency requires immediate departure," EDI chastised. Garrus was confused by the synthetic voice.

"Uuuuggggh, get off my ass, EDI. We still have a recruit here," Joker groaned. He then turned. "Oh! Hey Garrus, glad to see you didn't die on us. Doubt Cerberus would have resurrected you."

"You never know. Maybe they'd just do it so they could kill me in new and inventive ways to test poisons, then bring me back. Or try to make me a Kraak-Malgur," Garrus joked. The last word obviously not translating.

"A crack what now?" Joker questioned.

"Shit, translators screw that up?" We nodded in response. "Uh… dead, but not dead. A corpse with a corrupted spirit that won't leave. Corrupts the spirits of those it attacks. Spreads exponentially," Garrus explained.

"Oh, a zombie. Except for humans they're just dead bodies still alive thanks to a parasite or some shit and infects with a bite. You can lop off your arm if it's bitten there, but, can't cut off your neck without killing you," Joker added.

"Yet another curious similarity in Turian/Human culture," I pointed out.

"Bah, I'm pretty sure the undead are a basic horror story easy to come up with," Joker waved off. "So, see you haven't worked that stick back up your ass since last I saw you."

"I'm surprised more Turians don't do it. If anything, it means they have another weapon to use."

"A shit covered stick. Yeah, that would be a pretty useful deterrent," Joker smirked.

"Backtracking, who was that woman I heard?"

"Not you too," Joker groaned.

"Hello, Garrus Vakarian. I am the Enhanced Defense Intelligence, the artificial intelligence installed on the Normandy. You may call me EDI."

"Cerberus… built an AI. Yeah, that's not as surprising as it should be. Should I even bother working on the weapons?"

"I am only connected to the surveillance suite outside of combat, and the cyber warfare and cyber defense suits during combat. I have no control over the weapons systems. Per the Commander's wish stated on the crew deck, I have granted you access to the Main Battery. Commander, shall I assign him as Gunnery Officer?"

"Absolutely. He did great work on the Mako, and once he gets used to the Normandy's weapons, no one will be better for her."

"Looks like I'll have plenty of calibrating to do," Garrus mused.

"That can wait. Besides, I need the second-best soldier on the ground with me on ops."

"Who's the first?" Garrus grinned, nodding to acknowledge the compliment, yet to still go through our regular bullshit.

"Me, of course," I waved off jokingly. "Come on, armory, then share a drink in my quarters."

"Sold."

"I want in some time!"

"You got it, Joker. Next time."

"Have fun with your make-out sesh," Joker called out as we turned.

"Go back to your Krogan porn, dick-cheese," I responded, holding a middle finger up behind me. Think the crew was giving us a few confused looks as we walked to the armory. Jacob was inside, cleaning Garrus' equipment, maintaining it. He had been using that sniper almost non-stop after all, likely needed some replacement parts, but I instructed him to wait for Garrus. Plenty of that rifle was clearly custom.

"Up already? Tough son of a bitch," Jacob remarked, clearly surprised. He reached out a hand. "Jacob Taylor, armory chief." Garrus reluctantly accepted the hand. "Impressive set up you have. I've spent the last day cleaning and doing what repairs I can to your weapons and armor. But I haven't replaced anything in your rifle yet. Shepard thought it would be better to let you be around for that, with how custom it is. I think we can give you some solid upgrades, though," Jacob suggested. "I've got an order on some new armor ready to be finalized, but your old armor is still intact enough to be used. Surprisingly the shield systems aren't compromised, and neither is the power supply or built-in computer."

"Actually… if that's the case, I'd rather keep my old. For now, at least," Garrus stopped him. Jacob nodded understanding. He's holding onto something.

"Also, that visor of yours got a few scratches, but it came out of that mess alright. Ready to go."

"I'll take that now then. It's… multipurpose." Jacob walked to a locker behind him and pulled it out, handing it over to Garrus. He immediately put it on. The same visor as before, I think. It's important to him.

"Any requests on the guns?"

"Whatever needs to be replaced, just replace it with the same model of hardware for now. I'll come here to look over potential upgrades with you, but, not today."

"Sure. Take it I can find whatever I need in the marketplace?" Garrus nodded. "I'll go have a look around then. Good to meet you, Garrus."

"Thanks. You… too, Taylor." Jacob got up and left.

"Every instinct in my body is telling me that this can't be Cerberus. I mean, manners? Being polite? These were people shooting at us two years ago," Garrus muttered.

"I'm still not quite used to it either. And hell, I'm just more surprised that they're being nice to a Turian of all races. The only one I would have expected worse towards is a Batarian." Garrus didn't verbally respond, just shaking his head. We made our way back to the elevator, and up towards deck one.

"EDI, link Garrus' Omni-tool to the door. He's free to talk to me up here whenever," I ordered.

"Omni-tool linked, Commander," EDI answered. The door to my quarters opened.

"An entire deck all for yourself. Very nice indeed," Garrus chuckled.

"The perks of command. Couch just down there. I had Gardner head out to get a mini-fridge and stock it with beers, Levo and Dextro, for when you woke up." I made my way to the mini fridge, placed beneath my desk, while Garrus plopped himself down onto the sofa. As I made my way there, I tossed him his. We both opened ours and took a swig each.

"So… wanna talk about it?" Garrus sighed in response.

"I'll stay sober long enough to tell the crew about what Cerberus is done. But, not today, Shepard. With or without those other memories adding to it. All I want is to get absolutely shitfaced."

"Then shit-faced we shall be."

About an hour later, pacing ourselves, we gathered all the crew who wanted to hear of our history with Cerberus in the mess hall. Chakwas, Garrus, and I were standing by the sleeper pod bay, with Joker sitting on one of the steps. It wasn't lost on me that the only crew member, not present was Miranda. Even Zaeed had shown up, recently returning from his… appointment, in Afterlife. While he clearly wouldn't be loyal to Cerberus anyway, seems he's curious.

"Raise your hand if you're new to Cerberus. As in, signed on within the last two and a half years." Surprisingly, very surprisingly, a little over half raised their hands. Jacob didn't, but as I understand it, he's only been around the organization for five years. "Five years?" A little over a quarter of the crew weren't raising their hands. "Of those whose hands are up, which of you served with the Alliance before signing on?" All of those who had their hands up kept them up. "Now, out of all of you, how many can safely claim to know much about Cerberus' activities and operations in the past? Jacob and a few others raised their hands, but only partly. A 'yes and no,' kind of thing. "I see. I just wanted a clear picture on who those who showed up were. Garrus here was on the ground beside me during our encounters with Cerberus during our mission against Saren. Chakwas and Joker will be free to add their own comments, though they were obviously not on the ground themselves. I may have been dead for two years, but in my perspective, in my memory, those events were months ago at most, and all are events one would remember vividly throughout their life."

"And for what credibility it adds," Jacob spoke up. "When I told Shepard that Project Lazarus was Cerberus, the look in his eyes was some damn righteous fury. Not suspicion, not distrust, but the look of a man with a damn good reason to hate our asses." Hm. Aiding us. Surprising indeed.

"Thank you, Jacob. We started on Cerberus' trail shortly after I was inducted as a Spectre. Rear Admiral Kahoku had lost contact with his men on the planet Edolus. He was trying to investigate, but the system mysteriously became restricted, and he couldn't learn anything. With my Spectre authority, we could safely bypass it. As we were coming into orbit, Joker detected a faint distress signal. At its source, we found a Thresher maw nest, and Kahoku's men, all dead. Sounds an awful lot like something from my past, doesn't it?" There were a few murmurs amongst the crew. "We reported back to Kahoku, and he began his own investigation. Sometime later, he sent us a message. Long story short, he had a name. Cerberus. And he was on the run from them. There were coordinates in the message to a base he had located thanks to a deal with the Shadow Broker. I followed up on those Coordinates to a planet known as Binthu in the Voyager cluster. We found three different underground labs nearby one another. Each lab was staffed and offered no surrender. In each lab, there were large barriers that were housing creatures. Two of the sets we later learned to be Rachni."

"With respect, Commander," Gardner began. The Rachni have been dead a long time. How could Cerberus have gotten their hands on them?"

"Through a deal with Binary Helix. When we investigated Geth activity on Noveria, it took us to an overrun Binary Helix lab. They found a living egg in an old Rachni ship and hatched it. It was a queen, and they believed that without the queen's influence, they could turn the drones into an army. They learned a bit late that they need the queen to not kill everything in sight. Cerberus acquired some specimens."

"Back to Binthu, the other lab had creatures that were some form of… drone, soldier, thing, for a creature on Feros that used spores for mind control. Again, looking to breed an army," Garrus added. "And finally, in one of the Rachni cells, was Kahoku's corpse. Untouched by the creatures, but needle marks showing death by injection. Experimentation. On top of that, a squad leader ordered his troops to 'purge the Xeno scum.'"

"Kahoku hid a data chip by swallowing it, and it led us to a main facility on the planet Nepheron. We attacked the base, and again, no surrender was given. Downloaded plenty of files before the servers purged themselves. One of the dying commando's last words was that humanity would reign supreme. Exact words, not interpretation." I paused a moment, letting the crew mull over this information. "Our next encounter was on the planet Ontarom. Hackett had a lead about scientists being found dead. All he could find which linked them was some form of a project on none other than Akuze. Naturally, I immediately went to investigate. What I found was a merc group led by one human man, the man pointing his gun at the scientist, a Dr. Wayne. It was that day I learned I was not Akuze's sole survivor." The crew went silent. "Corporal Toombs told me everything. Cerberus organized the events on Akuze in some kind of sick experiment. They captured him and one other of my soldiers when they attempted to flee the site rather than wait in shelter with me. The other soldier, Gregory, died from the experimentation. They injected thresher maw acid into their veins just to see what it would do. And he had the scars to show it." One crewman stood.

"My sister was on Akuze. You're telling me I signed on to work for the bastards who killed her?!"

"What's your name?" The man had blonde hair and was relatively short. Maybe a little over five feet. He had blonde hair and was lightly tanned.

"Alex. Alex Crawford. My sister was-"

"Ana. I remember her mentioning you once," I nodded. Alex then gripped the Cerberus logo on his shoulder and tore it off, sitting back down. "We took Dr. Wayne in alive and brought Toombs back to the Alliance for help. We had one final set of encounters with Cerberus after that. On Feros we learned that ExoGeni and Cerberus were making a few deals together, that involved some more Colonies. We started at Nodacrux, which was a mess of its own but didn't have Cerberus influence that we could see. And it was the only one where they weren't doing anything monstrous. Chasca, on the other hand… That was an official Colony with families. That means children. When we arrived, we found Dragon's Teeth outside both residential buildings and then Husks. Both adult and children sized husks. Do you know what Dragon's Teeth and Husks are?"

"Aye. The things on Eden Prime, and the Citadel when the Geth attacked," Donnelly murmured. "And what they turned people into."

"To make matters worse, we found out how it happened too," Garrus began. "ExoGeni helped fund the colony, but Cerberus arrived with fake credentials and set up an outpost. They then requested that all Colonists join them at their facility for an announcement."

"We infiltrated the outpost to find that there were Cell blocks, some of which being overrun. Cerberus in the process of preparing their 'specimens' for transport. We killed all the Cerberus troops inside. We cleared the overrun cells, finding no survivors in those, and killed the husks in those still contained. Cell blocks nine and ten housed children. Cellblock ten was already overrun when we arrived."

"God…" a crewman whispered.

"The last I heard of Cerberus before my death was what they did with more of the Rachni they purchased from Binary Helix. Unmanned ships approached an Alliance listening post, and the Rachni released destroyed it. This then hid the distress call of an Alliance outpost in the same cluster under Rachni attack. In some measure of justice, the ships were traced back to a Cerberus ship which had also been overrun. And remember, this is in addition to the attack on the Idenna I learned of recently. From what the Quarians told me, three Humans were on the run from Cerberus. They had a biotic little girl who was being experimented on by Cerberus. By stumbling across some pilgrims, they secured temporary refuge in the fleet. Cerberus, using an exile, infiltrated the fleet themselves and attacked the Idenna with the goal of capturing this little girl. They failed, but killed many Quarian civilians in the process."

"This is sounding an awful lot like the bastards who killed my family…" I noticed Gardner was shaking his head, looking down at the ground.

"Well, fuck Cerberus then. Ay, lads? Fighting for Humanity, my arse," Donnelly exclaimed, tearing off his logo.

"Yeah, fuck these kid killing asshats," Daniels tore off her own.

"And I thought the Batarians were right old cunts," Zaeed remarked. The crew was clearly shaken by this. I believe all the crew that had been around only two and a half years or so had removed their logos, while the five years were split. Some of the more senior members had removed those as well. Those who haven't might just need time to think about it. I can't be sure or not yet. I was surprised to see Jacob hadn't removed his. He had his Omni-tool out though. And my own was pinged as his was put down.

You've sold me. I won't take mine off yet though. Miranda owes a lot to Cerberus but she's a good woman. She'll come around with time, and I can get through to her if she doesn't see me as a 'traitor' yet.

Jacob gave me a nod when I looked up. I'll take his word for it.

"Go ahead and sleep on it. For tonight though, I need a drink. A lot of them."

Garrus and I left the crew to their thoughts and returned to my quarters. He got his wish.

Absolutely fucking shitfaced.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, thought I was forgetting to say something. My apologies for needing to update the chapter to fix it for this. Anyways. You may notice the inclusion of an "Alex" this chapter. (The last name I came up with on the spot, as I did the sister.) This was the first of the Cameos from my . If you're on the discord, that's Zohatu. I would also be needing to give a cameo to Fleece, but he's refused that offer. My thanks to the both of them for pledging.**


	9. Down With The Sickness

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, back from vacation, and I've started work on that one-shot I was comissioned for. Regular schedule resumes for now, but be warned that I have registered for college while also applying for jobs. It's not impossible that I may need to cut the schedule down to once a week. I can't make any promises right now other than the promise that I won't stop. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

I lazily opened my eyes, and then sat up on my bed. Hm, that can't be right. Where's the pounding headache? And, why can I remember- oh, right. I've basically gotten a super liver. My eyes scanned the room and I saw Garrus laying on his stomach on the couch, one arm drooped over the side towards the floor. Plenty of empty cans along the table. Damn, he wasted no time in getting himself plastered last night. He really needed to just forget whatever was going on. Even if it was just for a short while. Note to self. Find out everything that's been going on with him, especially everything that's troubling him, help him talk about it, to come to terms with it. To help him move past it. After all, I'm sure my own death played no small part in it. I grunted as I pulled myself up from the bed and made my way towards my Turian friend. I leaned down and gently shook him.

"Come on, wake up buddy." He groaned.

"Don't talk so loud, dammit." He opened his eyes, slowly sitting up before slumping back against the couch, running a hand across his plated face, then scratching the back of his neck. His mouth and mandibles then opened wide and his tongue rolled out a bit as he yawned, stretching. He closed and smacked his lips together two times. "How the hell are you in such good shape? Cerberus give you a new liver?"

"More or less," I shrugged. My Omni-tool was pinged. It was a message from Jacob.

 _Shepard_

 _EDI is holding this message until you and Garrus are up. Yesterday shook the crew up, you know that. What you may not know, is that a lot of the crew has a lot to thank Cerberus for. Things they can't look past from just words. Most of those who've been around longer approached me earlier this morning. They want you to know that yesterday, they got caught up in the heat of the moment. After sleeping it over, they're just not sure. They don't know what to make of most anything. Here's a hypothetical. If you or a family member had a rare disease, and you either didn't have the money to treat it, or people were just unable to treat it, and then an organization shows up, helps you, and all they ask is that you work for them, would it really be so easy to forget all of that with just words? Regardless of the truth they hold? I'm on your side here, Shepard, but I'm also on the side of good people. And the crew here is just that. They're sorry, and if true, they don't condone the actions you claim Cerberus has taken, which I personally am inclined to believe. But they don't want to believe it. It'll take a personal, first-person experience that convinces them. I hope you'll respect that. All they and I ask is that you understand and that you'll be willing to be friendly with them. Thanks._

 _Jacob_

I took a deep breath.

"What is it?' Garrus asked. I twisted my arm so that he could read it himself. "I gotta admit. I understand, even though I don't really want to."

"Yeah, that's what I hate about it," I muttered. I looked at my Omni-tool again and noticed I had another message. Maybe I wouldn't be leaving my quarters in a bad mood. It was from Tali. A smile snuck across my face and Garrus raised a brow upon seeing it. Before he must have come to a realization.

 _Shepard,_

 _Don't be too hard on yourself for accepting the deal. Your reasons are just, and the price, for now, at least, is reasonable. Just, be careful. As I'm sure you already know. Just, do it for me. Please._

 _Trying to be more pleasant, I'm surprised and interested in the new Normandy. I'm sure there's plenty I'd love to look over. And I'm very surprised to hear that Joker and Chakwas are on board. I'm sure it helps you a lot to have some familiar faces around. Please, give them both my greetings and that I hope both of them are doing well. I wish I could tell you where to find the others, but you'd have better luck finding them than me. I wish you were here. The more I hear about my upcoming mission, the more dangerous it sounds. But I'm not about to let myself die when you only just came back into my life. The fleet is going to be holding position by some comm buoys in Terminus for two days' time. Give me a call when you're able, and maybe we could talk a bit. But, not about that just yet._

 _-Tali_

I was brought back to reality when Garrus faked a gag, "You're going to make me vomit."

I just ignored it.

"The fleet's in range of comm buoys and looks like they're still in their day cycle. She suggested I call when I'm able. Would be a nice way to surprise her about you."

"Go ahead," Garrus gestured.

I started the call. From what I understand, Cerberus was providing everyone on the crew with higher priority extranet access. Paying the providers to have more up to date information and contact. The priorities all determine just how close to real-time one gets across the galaxy. But it also in part depends on where one lives. If you live on the Citadel, you only need basic, because so many news sources broadcast from there or at least broadcast there quickly. The station also has plenty of server farms that house plenty of websites so it's all still on the local net. But if you live on Omega, basic priority will mean your posts and communications with others could be weeks or even months delayed. The buoys can only transfer so much information at FTL at once. Luckily, once you're in a call, it's real time. With the priority, we have, however, and that she's in Terminus, it should only take a few minutes or so for the call to reach her.

It took ten minutes before the call was accepted. And during that time, Garrus had gone to get some hangover meds and probably take a piss, while grabbing a dextro protein bar for breakfast, and coming back up.

"Hi Shepard, you caught me just as I got onto my lunch break," she greeted.

"Got your message while I was still asleep. Woke up only a few minutes before I sent the call. Things alright? You got me a bit nervous about your mission." Tali sighed.

"I wasn't comfortable saying it in a text, but," Tali type on her Omni-tool for a moment. "On a secure direct line? It's in Geth space. Fortunately. I'm hoping to leak the coordinates to you, honestly. I've got an idea or two about that."

"Geth space? Fleet must have found something important. Well, you just say the word and I'll drop everything to go help." I could tell she smiled.

"I know. And thank you. How's the recruiting gone?" I glanced to the side towards Garrus, who was still silent and out of frame. I smirked.

"Very well. Zaeed we were able to pick up without any hassle, but Archangel was in a bit of trouble. We still haven't gotten Mordin Solus. As for Archangel, well, I think you'd love to meet him." I stretched my arm out and Garrus leaned in.

"Long time no see, Tali."

"Garrus?" Tali's eyes went wide. "What in the ancestors' names were you doing on Omega?"

"Just… trying to do some good."

"Well, it's good to see you."

EDI's chime went off.

"Apologies for the interruption, Commander, but Operative Lawson is insisting the ground team prepare to retrieve Professor Solus."

"Yeah… yeah, we probably should," I grumbled.

"Who was that?" Tali asked. Oh, shit. Not the time to explain to her there's an AI on board.

"I'll… tell you later. Sorry, but Mordin is sort of in the middle of a plague zone."

"Then I won't keep you. Good luck. And, Shepard?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm… looking forward to that talk too," she glanced down, likely blushing as bright as I was. And she chuckled awkwardly. Down boy.

"Alright, I'm leaving before this gets any worse," Garrus got up and began walking to the door.

"Bosh-Tet! I forgot you were here!" Tali pulled the front of her hood down over her eyes. I couldn't help laughing just a little. "And why are you laughing?"

"Sorry, sorry, just…" Garrus was chuckling as the door opened for him. "You're… never mind. We'll talk later." Yeah, I was definitely blushing. The great Commander Shepard, blushing as he awkwardly talks to a cute girl.

"R-right. Talk later." she gave a small wave with her three-fingered hand. The vid call ended. Alright, let's uh… get started. I got myself showered suited up in my armor, then got in the elevator for crew quarters. The door opened shortly after, and I remembered Jacob's message. I saw a few crewmembers who had removed the Cerberus logo wearing uniforms that still had it on. I took a deep breath, calming the initial surge of anger. They have their reasons, they don't want to believe what I told them. They'll come to believe eventually. I said nothing for now and kept a neutral face. I approached Gardner and made sure I gave nods to some of the crew eating. I didn't have time to sit down and chat.

"What can I get you?" Gardner asked.

"Just a protein bar." Gardner nodded and got one, handing it over. "Thanks. Maybe tomorrow I'll finally get to try out your cooking." That should be friendly enough for a start. Gardner grinned, confirming.

"I don't have much to work with, but I'll do the best I can for ya."

"Appreciated. Thanks." I began munching on the protein bar as I went back to the elevator for the armory. The fact Jacob wasn't present told me he was waiting by the airlock, or even just outside the ship. I got my weapons together and made my way to the airlock. Jacob, Miranda, Zaeed, and Garrus were all waiting. I was surprised that Garrus' armor still looked as intact as it was. I didn't need any verbal orders, we simply began moving out towards the transport bay that'll take us to the plague zone. Naturally, Garrus was walking at my side. We arrived to see a Turian guarding a door, rifle in hand with a whole lot of Quarantine warnings along the door to the transports. There was a human woman in front of the guard.

"You can't keep me out! I live in there!" the woman demanded.

"I'm doing you a favor lady. You go in, the guards will cut you down," the Turian shrugged.

"But everything I own is in that apartment!"

"Look, I told you to get lost. The whole zone is quarantined, and no one gets in," he repeated.

"I'm human, you ass! Humans can't get the plague! Just let me in before looters get all of my things!"

"But you could carry that shit out around you and infect the rest of the station. Not taking any chances," The Turian argued.

"You one of Aria's men?" I asked.

"Sort of. She's not wasting or risking her own men guarding it, hired smaller times like myself," the Turian breathed, annoyed with the woman.

"She tell you about someone like me going in?"

"If she told someone, ain't me. Must have been during someone else's shift," he shrugged. "Far as I'm concerned though, no one's gotten the go-ahead yet." Ugh, guess Omega does things less than half-assed. Unless it's trying to take out a damn vigilante.

"Look, I'm trying to find Mordin Solus. It's very important."

"The doc, eh? Crazy bastard opened a clinic there a few months ago. The Blue Suns weren't too happy about it. From what I hear, the Salarian's trying to deal with the plague. Wish him luck, but the area is still locked down. Our orders are to wait until the plague or the Suns kill everyone, then go in and clean up."

"No one other than Mordin even trying to cure it?" I raised a brow, surprised. Omega just really doesn't give a shit does it?

"This is Omega. No one else is smart enough. And those who are, are working with the gangs to cook up crazy ass new drugs, weapons, whatever. They sure as hell don't care enough to cure something."

"Anyone have a clue how a disease crossed the Dextro-levo barrier?"

"Artificial has to be," the Turian shrugged. "It either got loose in there, or it's being tested. Humans and Vorcha are immune. And the Vorcha just because no disease fucks them over. Since all the Vorcha brainpower combined barely adds up to a pile of shit, they sure as hell aren't responsible. Whoever is, is probably human." I raised a brow again, turning to Miranda.

"Does Cerberus know anything about that?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Besides, Cerberus would test it in a lab, not Omega. It wouldn't be worth it."

"Hm," I turned back, not ruling out that it is Cerberus, just not within Miranda's knowledge.

"The fuck do the Suns care about the district?" Zaeed questioned.

"They ran it. Well, used to. Plague hit them hard, most of their men in the area being Turian. The Vorcha are trying to move in now, seeing a perfect little spawning ground, killing field, whatever."

"Great, that'll be fun," Garrus remarked sarcastically.

"Listen, pal, you and your guys are stuck here until it's all over, right? Then you have clean-up duty afterward. That'll be messy. And could take weeks. Look at me, look at my squad. Armed, armored, well trained. We're professionals. Professionals solve problems. Let us in, we'll get it all sorted." The Turian took a moment to mull it over.

"Fuck it… why not? Quarantine is more to keep infected in any way. I'll let em know you're coming in. Tram will take you over," he shrugged.

"You're letting them through but not me?!" The woman exclaimed.

"He's got a fucking rocket launcher, lady. You don't. Get lost." It was a struggle to not chuckle as he let us through.

"Helmets on. Seal yourselves up. Garrus, double for you. You're the only one of us who can get sick, so we don't want you getting a breach."

"Don't have to tell me twice." Once everyone was fully sealed, we got in the tram and waited. When it arrived about fifteen minutes later, we simply got out and made our way into the district. More quarantine warnings, scattered crates, and boxes. And then a barricade, some Turians, also fully sealed, guarding it.

"You're clear. Go around," one of them pointed to a doorway. I suppose they change shifts using a decon chamber somewhere either here or back on the other side of the tramway. On the other side of the barricade were a dozen or so more guards. They let us pass into the district proper. The Gozu district, as the sign overhead read.

"Careful, Blue Suns and Vorcha are shooting anything that moves," one of them warned. Our weapons were ready. And just as we were coming down a staircase, there was a pair of Blue Suns. Talking to each other seems. With my Mattock, I put two rounds into the skull of one while Zaeed fired a burst from his Vindicator into the other. There were fires. As we got closer, I saw exactly what I expected. Bodies. Burning em all.

"Plague control at its most basic," Zaeed remarked. Least we couldn't smell it. I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I relaxed as I then saw that it was a body slumped against the wall. Coughing, rocking, slightly. Batarian. He wasn't wearing armor, just clothes, so a civilian here. A part of me was still rather… cautious. Well, he's by what seems like the way forward, and he's a victim. Should really talk to him. Try to help, see if he knows anything. We got closer, his skin was rashed, small boils look like too. He was coughing with a blood covered shirt and collar.

"Human… should have guessed," he struggled to keep his gaze on us. He coughed again. "Bad enough you infect us. Now you lack the decency to wait until I die before you steal my shit."

"Do I look like a common looter? Come on, you need help," I got down to a knee. He raised a Carnifex.

"Get away from me! Your kind has done too much already!" He wheezed. "Your plague did this! Your feigned pity is the final insult!" I backed away slightly, and he lowered the gun.

"I don't know if a human caused this, but I'm here to fix it. Hell, I'm with a Turian after all. And believe me, I've got quite a few bones to pick with Batarians too. But far as I can tell, you weren't there. Help me find Mordin Solus, we'll put an end to the plague."

"Humans looking for the Human sympathizer. I hope the Vorcha burn him and his clinic down," the Batarian tried to growl. "I hope" he began coughing much more violently. Blood coming out this time. I got back down, took some medi-gel, and injected it into his chest. It'll go to his lungs, his throat, and close off whatever's making it so hard to breathe. Won't cure it, but it'll buy time. He took a deeper, clearer breath.

"It's only Medi-gel, but it's better than nothing."

"You… you helped me. Why?" he questioned.

"Bloody boy scout," Zaeed chuckled. I just ignored it.

"It's what I do," I shrugged. "If I can help Mordin cure this, I will."

"You sound… sincere. Maybe it's the fever, but… what do I have to lose?" the Batarian murmured. "Mordin has a clinic on the far side of the district. He's taking in refugees, offering to help the infected. I was afraid to go to him. He's dangerous."

"What makes a doctor worse than a plague?" Garrus asked.

"The Suns tried to press him for protection money. He stunned them with some kind of toxin, then gunned them down. He's more than a Doctor. Doctor's don't execute people then display the bodies as a warning."

"Brutal, but that sounds STG alright," I mused. "Thanks. When I reach the clinic, I'll send someone for you."

"Thank you," the Batarian coughed. "My time runs short, but, at least I have some flicker of hope for my final hours. Good luck, human." I gave the Batarian a nod as he tried to rest, and we moved forward. A plaza was ahead, and I peeked a corner to see Blue Suns on guard duty at a barricade. I was against a building with an upper level, fortunately, so I signaled for us to move up and in there. We stayed low to make sure they didn't spot us. I counted down, and then we all stood and opened fire from above. There was a squad's worth of Suns, and we took them by surprise, gunning them down. Broke through whatever shields they had, and their bodies fell to the floor. Some were obviously Turian, but others we couldn't tell if they were Batarian or Humans, thanks to all of them fully sealing themselves up. We went back down and started to go around the barricade when I saw a locked apartment door that the Suns had, at least for a small while, been trying to open up. Survivors? Fortunately, it was an easy hack and the door opened. I heard a feminine gasp, before a shush.

"Hear that? Got survivors."

"Hear what?" Garrus asked.

"I didn't hear it. Must have been the upgrades," Jacob remarked. Well, ain't that nice. I put my weapon away.

"Lawson, Taylor, guard the door." We went down into the apartment itself. "Don't be afraid. We're here to help. The Blue Suns outside are gone." I called out. A man and a woman stood from behind a pair of shelves in the large bedroom area.

"Oh thank god, you're human," the woman began.

"When we heard that door open, we thought they found us. The Blue Suns are killing all Humans they can find. Even their own," the man revealed. Must just be blaming all humans.

"Well, you're safe now. We're on our way to find Mordin. You can follow behind, we'll clear the way," I offered.

"A doctor with military grade mechs helping people for free. Not on Omega," the man grumbled. The mechs are new info. "Vorcha try to muscle in, he kills them all without the mechs. Blue Suns learn he's sheltering humans, try to burn down the clinic, killed them too. Went right back to work."

"It's better than staying locked in your apartment. You'll be just fine so long as you follow behind. Wait for gunfire to stop, move up. The woman put a hand on the man's shoulder.

"We need to try," she whispered. The man took a deep breath.

"Yeah… yeah, you're right. We'll follow behind soon." I gave them a nod, and we left the apartment, moving ahead. Behind the Blue Suns barricade was a hallway that also split off towards a staircase up. Looked like just a single level over our heads. Probably better odds than just along the lower level. So, we went up. Good thing too. We heard gunfire, the beginning of a skirmish between the Suns and Vorcha. Barely a handful of Suns, while there were over a dozen Vorcha.

"Focus fire on the Vorcha. If the Suns won't be grateful, hopefully, the Vorcha will off them for us," I ordered. We again stood and rained gunfire. Always aiming for the head. A wave of Vorcha reinforcements came through, but they just had all eyes on the Blue Suns right in front of them, not some unknown assailant out of sight. Sure as hell not going to complain. Still, the Blue Suns didn't last long, and the remaining Vorcha screeched before turning their attention to us. Two trying to charge up a staircase in front of us, though we took him down right away. Before long, the Vorcha were all dead. We got back down to the lower level. I noticed the carcasses of a few Varren, showing signs of infection, but with limbs having been cut off, and other signs that the Vorcha had been eating the dead Varren. I don't doubt they've eaten looters and Blue Suns either.

Shortly, we passed through another set of doors leading to a lower level and saw a display reading "Clinic," with an arrow pointing to the right. Convenient. We lowered our weapons, but kept them out for now, following the path directed by the sign. We came to an abandoned storefront that had been turned into a makeshift guard post. A human with a rifle and two LOKI mechs behind him on standby. Upon seeing us, the man immediately lowered his weapon.

"You're not Blue Suns, and you're not Vorcha. I'll let you in, but no funny business inside." I responded just by stowing my weapon on my back, the others following suit. We entered, seeing what was essentially a smaller hospital emergency room. Though instead of seats and couches, mostly there were cots with sick on it. There were some seats for Human refugees, but not too many. Could be that most of the Humans are just working rather than waiting. Like the two working reception behind the counter on our left.

"You're not sick, and you're not refugees. Here to help?" The man asked.

"However we can."

"Thank god, need all the help we can get. Mordin's around here somewhere, probably in the back. Please, find him."

"Professor, we're running low on Ciproxin," the woman behind the counter asked into an intercom. It chimed back. The voice that responded was clearly Salarian.

"Use Malanarin. Plenty on hand. Almost as good. Causes cramping in Batarians. Supplement with butemerol." Doesn't fluff his sentences it seems. Says all that needs to be said. Sounds familiar. The doc was still talking, though. "Cenzonine is the catalyst. Bonds to genetic markers. Hard to find. Expensive to mass produce. Why not heplacore?"

"Sorry, he does this. Just-" the woman began.

"No, no, no. Too unstable. Inconsistent results. Demozane better option. No. Demozane toxic to humans. Not an option. Not an option." Damn, knows all this stuff off the top of his head? Well, Salarians do have damn good memory. We just went down the hallway the receptionist pointed to. A few more cots. Some sick, Salarian, Batarian, Turian, an Asari or two. Some though, same species, not sick. The doc's voice helped us find him. He was working on a patient. The Turian on the examination table was still alive, though unconscious. A heartbeat monitor going steady.

"Professor Mordin Solus?" He had light brown/red skin, with a more bleached looking white around his mouth and where, if he was human, his nose would be. He had wrinkles along his chin, and one of the two horns on his head was missing. He was wearing what seemed like a cross between a Doctor's medical get-up, and armor. Mostly white, but with a red stripe down the middle, and a white arc extension to the armor around his chest like one would see on Salarian armors. And finally, some form of… brace? Thing? That extended from his armor around and behind his neck. Without a word, the doctor activated and raised his Omni-tool. Scanning Garrus.

"Turian physiology resilient with simple immunobooster." He handed a needle with the contents to Garrus. Take it, safe from the plague in case of suit breach."

"Works for me." Garrus shrugged and put it into his armor's system, allowing it to distribute it like medi-gel.

"Now to greetings, human. Curious. Don't recognize you from area. Too well-armed to be refugees. No mercenary uniform. Quarantine still in effect." Mordin began walking over to a terminal, still looking at us. He began working at it, looking at the screen. "Here for something else. Vorcha? Crew to clean them out? Unlikely. Vorcha a symptom, not a cause." He was starting to talk quite a lot faster. I opened my mouth to speak, but he was already back at it. "The plague? Investigating possible use as bio-weapon?" he was off the terminal now and walking back to his patient. "No. Too many guns, not enough data equipment. Soldiers, not scientists. Yes, yes," his brow furrowed.

"Professor, please, relax. Let me explain," I halted him before he could continue. He stared back at me, his full attention. "I'm Commander Shepard, and I came here to find you. I'm on a mission critical to the Galaxy's survival, and I need your help."

"Commander Shepard? Dead. Faked death not unlikely. Long-term undercover. Mission? No, too busy. Clinic understaffed. Plague spreading too fast. Who sent you?"

"A privately owned and funded group of asshats who prefer to keep themselves unknown, but asshats I don't have much choice other than to accept their help."

"Clearly not Alliance. Not private and respected by Commander. Related to plague? Doesn't affect humans. Human-centric interest. Few human groups would know me. Equipment suggests military origin. Not Alliance standard. Spectres not Human organization nor private. Terra Firma too unstable. Only one option. Cerberus sent you. Unexpected."

"I'm surprised, Mordin," I crossed my arms over my chest. "I only ever learned they existed when they began shooting at me two years ago." I couldn't help but notice Miranda scoff and shake her head.

"Crossed paths on occasion. Thought they only worked with Humans," Mordin remarked, eying Garrus, who was leaning against the wall. "Turian involvement surprising. Racial tension with humans. Unlikely to help human-centric organization."

"I'm an old friend of Shepard's, professor. And besides, what's going on here is bigger than Human interests. We all have to work together to take down the Collectors. And the one's pulling their strings," Garrus explained. Mordin put a hand to his chin, the other arm around his lower torso. Thinking.

"Collectors? Interesting. Plague hitting these slums is engineered. Collectors one of few groups with technology to design it. Our goals may be similar. But, must stop plague first. Already have a cure. Need to distribute it at environmental control center. Vorcha guarding it. Need to kill them.

"Consider it done. Where do we get to it?" There was the sound of something powering down. Vents shutting down, red emergency lights turning on. Mordin looked around as it happened.

"That's a bad noise," Garrus mused. Mordin got on his Omni-tool.

"Vorcha have shut down environmental systems. Trying to kill everyone. Need to get power back on before district suffocates. Here," Mordin handed a vial to me. Filled with a dark blue liquid. "Take plague cure. One more thing, Daniel. One of my assistants. Went into Vorcha territory. Looking for victims. Hasn't come back."

"I'll keep an eye out for him."

"Thank you," Mordin grinned. "Told him not to go. But he's smart. Bright future. I hope."

"And before we get moving, there was a sick Batarian near the entrance to the neighborhood. Told him I'd send someone for him when I got here."

"Hm, risky. Blue Suns and Vorcha still battling. Assume back along same route you took?" I nodded in response. "Will see what I can do. Should be safer. Way to environmental control center, other entrance to clinic. Not the one you took." We got a move on, leading the professor behind. We got towards a plaza to find Vorcha standing around, clawing at one another. Even saw one bite out the throat of the other. And fortunately, their backs were to us.

"Garrus, stay right here. Jacob, Miranda, take the debris pile in the middle. Zaeed, check the corner down there for hostiles. If not, move as needed to engage those here. I'll take the other wall just here." We got moving quietly, keeping ourselves low. I took a closer look at the Vorcha themselves. One began sniffing the air. The same one which had a flamethrower and fuel tank on its back.

"Garrus, shoot the tank. Jacob, Miranda, get a biotic detonation on a group further back. And, go!" The Vorcha had just begun to turn to see what he was smelling when a round impacted the fuel tank, causing it to detonate, turning him, and his buddy beside him into meaty chunks.

"Could use some help over 'ere!" Zaeed called out.

"On my way," I answered, moving along the wall to him.

"Take the wall on the other side, I'll cover your ass," the merc suggested. I nodded, and just as he turned the corner to open fire, I ducked and ran to the wall he pointed out. Just as I heard a violent dark energy detonation from the biotics. Killing more Vorcha. There were about half a dozen though snarling and opening fire along the alley Zaeed and I were in. Fortunately, they weren't that accurate, and it gave us some chance to open fire, putting rounds right into their brains. Slowly, surely, whittling them down. And it helped as the others had less and less to shoot, letting them help us out. Eventually, we overwhelmed them and took it down. Allowing us to move along to the upper levels. It took us about three levels up before we heard muffled yelling. Muffled enough to block the translator, revealing some of the words being Batarian, and another voice, that of a Human's.

"Please! Listen to me!" the man shouted.

"You hear what they're saying?" Garrus asked.

"Only the human," I answered. "Let's put a stop to it." We lined up along the door, then opened it, storming in. There was a man on the floor with vials on the ground, the same vials as Mordin had given us. Three Batarians staring down at him, one with a gun trained on him.

"Back away, Human. We have no quarrel with you," the lead, the one with the gun, growled.

"Please! I'm telling the truth! I work for Mordin at the clinic. I came here to help you!" The man, Daniel, turned to look at us. He had a black eye. A young man, early twenties maybe.

"And what the hell is in those vials, huh? You're spreading the plague virus!"

"Put that weapon down. We just came from the clinic ourselves. Got a vial just like that."

"So you're also spreading it. One more step and I kill your friend," the Batarian growled.

"Take a deep breath, and think this through. You're scared shitless, yeah. The Vorcha, the plague, who wouldn't be? But this man isn't to blame. Why would he go into Vorcha territory to spread the plague? They're immune." The two Batarians without guns glanced at each other.

"He's right. It doesn't make any sense." The one with a gun took another moment.

"If we release him, we can go?"

"You can." The lead Batarian lowered his gun, so I lowered mine, the others following suit.

"Human nobility…" the Batarian began. "I wasn't sure such a thing existed."

"Omega isn't really the place to judge a whole species. If I judged all Batarians for Elysium, you'd already be corpses on the floor," I countered.

"Hm…" The Batarian went into thought while he and the others brushed past, leaving. Daniel stood, gathering his things.

"Thank you. I thought they were going to…" he gulped. "To kill me. Did Mordin send you?"

"Yeah. He could really use the help. Too many patients, not enough volunteers."

"Ok. I'll…" he took another deep breath. "I'll go right away. Thanks, again. I owe you… well… everything."

"The way back to the clinic should be clear. We need to keep moving."

"Good luck," Daniel wished as we took our leave. Soon we reached the Environmental control center, a large building in a large, open sector with giant fans built into the side. Fans that currently, were not spinning. And Vorcha scrounging around the catwalks. Garrus and I took position with our snipers, lined up shots on two of the three we could see, and then Zaeed took a knee in the center, taking aim with his Vindicator. Garrus and I fired, while Zaeed fired a burst. All three Vorcha went down.

"Nice shot," Garrus hummed.

"It was nothing. Should see what I can pull off with one of those rifles you got," Zaeed shrugged off.

"Well, no way that's all of em, and they all know someone's here. Move up, get ready," I ordered. As more of the catwalk came into view, we got eyes on just two more Vorcha watching for us. And then missiles heading our way. Everyone dove out of the way and braced for the detonations. Our shields absorbing the shrapnel. Fortunately, they weren't homing, so just a sidestep as soon as they fire is all we need. We got back up, spreading out, and Garrus and I quickly took them both down as the next volley was fired. We took position against the low wall that looks over to the Environmental control center, finding we had elevation on half a dozen Vorcha guards. Even when they took cover, we still saw the back of their heads. This made them extremely easy pickings. When the area was clear, we made our way down and around the makeshift barricades, entering the control center. First, part warehouse, part shuttle bay that the engineers would use. Then, just up some stairs into the control center itself. We opened the door, a squad of Vorcha surrounding the machines. One was squatting in the back, visibly shitting. More things I never needed to see in my life. One Vorcha, wearing a Blood Pack tattoo on its shoulder, and with bloody hands and bloody mouth snarled, but didn't have its weapon out yet.

"You no come here! We shut down machines! Break fans! Everyone choke and die! Then Collectors make us strong!" Well, we know who's responsible, and we know why the Vorcha are doing this. Not like we can talk them out of this. So, I fired, straight into the Vorcha's forehead. He went limp as a hole appeared, and he fell over. The other Vorcha snarled, getting up and starting to shoot. Even the one who was shitting, a log just flopping down as he ran towards us. Not with a gun, just trying to claw us to pieces, I suppose. The other Vorcha with guns were smart enough to be in cover but still left themselves as easier targets, as we were just barely outnumbering them now. We pushed our advantage, taking them down.

"Alright, EDI? How do I get this place online again?" I questioned.

"Start with the central control system. You should see it at the far end of the room. You can inject the cure and reinitialize the system there," the AI answered. It was as simple as flipping a switch from off to on. Literally. "Link me into the systems so I may provide a conduit for the cure into the air." I simply linked my Omni-tool to the main console, and then a slot raised and opened. "Pour the contents inside." I did just that. "Now you must reactivate the fans. They have been individually deactivated at their controls at the left and right sides of the room. They too are closest to the back wall that you are now at."

"Understood. No splitting up today. We push through as one. There were catwalks on both sides, and Vorcha scrambling across them. Some already making their way to this platform. We just waited, letting them come to us. Mowing them down. Vorcha, it seems, are anything but patient. We started to our right, climbing over the bodies of Vorcha not willing to wait when they would have had a superior position. We were simply able to stroll down, maybe scavenge some Thermal clips, and reactivate the fan, flipping the switch. We had to hold position, however, Vorcha, likely reinforcements from the other side, were now charging us. But again, we had a superior position, and they were coming to us. They were the ones deciding to move down an open line of fire. We simply put them down and moved along to the other fan. Air was blowing hard through the control center, with only one of the two fans online. It just wasn't an even flow being spread out. It wasn't slowing us down, however. Most of it was along the ceiling. We strolled over, flipped the switch, and all was well.

"Let's get back to Mordin. Now maybe he'll be willing to sign on."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

The crew and I strode back into Mordin's clinic. People still lay on cots, but they didn't seem to be on death's door anymore. Just resting. Others were sitting up; other cots were empty. Overall, the atmosphere was one of relief. Even saw the couple who had followed us behind. Which, they were eager to thank us. Even the Batarian we helped. We made our way to Mordin's examination room. While he had yet to turn back, it was obvious he knew we were there. Daniel was helping move some items around.

"Environmental systems engaged. Airborne viral levels dropping. Patients improving. Vorcha retreating." Mordin turned. He was grinning. "Well done, Shepard. Thank you."

"And thank you from me, as well," Daniel wrung his hands. "Those Batarians would have killed me. For a second there…" he wiped sweat from his forehead. "I thought you were going to shoot them anyway."

"I keep my word," I shrugged.

"Merciful of you. Risky. Would have killed them myself," Mordin added nonchalantly. Daniel though was clearly taken by surprise.

"Professor, how could you say that? You're a doctor! You believe in helping people!"

"Lots of ways to help people. Sometimes heal patients. Like doctor. Sometimes execute dangerous people. Like Archangel," Mordin gesture towards Garrus.

"How-" Garrus began.

"Simple. Turian. Same height. Same build. Same armor, though damaged. Marksman. Mercenaries claim Archangel died in explosion. Body not recovered. Explosive damage to armor. Upon scan, explosive wounds to body, body treated for explosive wounds. Glad to see you alive."

"But-what-Archangel? How-" Daniel sputtered. Then he just sighed and left. A hand on his head, as if there was a headache.

"Good kid. Bit naive. He'll learn. Letting him take over the clinic. Should be able to handle it now that Vorcha are gone." Ah, I notice that word choice.

"Take it that means you'll join us?"

"Yes, gladly! Unexpected to be working with Cerberus. Many surprises."

"You have no idea," Garrus chuckled.

"Just need to finish up here at the clinic. Won't take long. Meet you at your ship. Looking forward to it." I transferred the docking information.

"See you on the Normandy, Professor."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Few things about this one I just want to talk about. First, and arguably, least important, the bit with the comm buoy explanation? Trying to fit in the kinds of things we take for granted in the game. A reminder about the comm buoy system as described in the codex and everything, how I think we often expect too much of it. That kinda thing. Second, everything to do with the message Jacob sent and the reasons for it. I spoke with my editors the day last chapter was posted, and, well, yeah, having so many turn away from Cerberus so quickly isn't the right thing to do narratively, nor is it that realistic. I'd explain again here but you'd just be reading part of Jacob's message again. Anyways, that's all I can think of that I need to say here, so hope you enjoyed, see y'all in the next one.**


	10. Fault

**Commander John Shepard**

Curiously, TIM wanted to greet Mordin personally. Had some information for him. So, when the Professor arrived in the Normandy, I escorted him to the briefing room behind the elevator on CIC. Afterall, I was curious what this news was myself, and it's a decent enough place to explain the situation to Mordin anyway. The Salarian was clearly taking in everything, memorizing it perfectly, analyzing whatever he could. Wonder what gears were turning inside that head. The briefing room was all white and very clean. A table in the center with a hologram of the Normandy in the center. The table began descending as Mordin and I entered, with Jacob having decided to tag along as we had passed through the armory. He stood in the corner of the room, leaning against the wall while the table descended to the floor, the lights going dark. All replaced with an image of TIM's office. He took a drag of his cigarette.

"Professor Solus. I'm glad to see you accepted the offer to work with us."

"Collectors created plague in Gozu district. Killed many. Dangerous. Glad to help stop them."

"I see. Has Shepard told you the stakes, yet?"

"I was going to after this," I shrugged.

"While no doubt telling stories about my organization," TIM eyed me. Yeah, figured he knew about that. I just gave him the finger, my face stone. He took another drag of his cigarette, and let loose a breath, blowing plenty of smoke through his nose. "The reason your name was on one of our dossiers, Professor, is that we know the Collectors have a way of incapacitating an entire colony. Whether by stasis or a nerve agent, we don't know just yet. But we do know how it is administered. In the latest abduction site, one of the Collector's seeker drones was left behind. We acquired it, and it is being delivered to your location. Can you examine it and find a countermeasure?"

"Of course. Interesting challenge. Will make top priority of my other experiments," Mordin answered. TIM nodded.

"Good. The drone will arrive at Omega by tomorrow morning." The others will finish the briefing." The visual of his office faded, the lights came back up, and the table rose again.

"Collectors must be getting sloppy," I mused.

"Speaking of Collectors, what exactly are they doing?"

"Kidnapping entire colonies. The entire planet's worth of colonists. Currently, they're targeting only human colonies. Not sure why yet."

"I see," Mordin began scratching his chin. "Distressing. Stopping them, worthy cause. Back in clinic, mentioned puppet masters?"

"A race of ancient AI called the Reapers. Sovereign was one of them. The massive dreadnaught that attacked the Citadel."

"Concurs with STG reports on Virmire. And Dr. T'Soni's research."

"You read Liara's work?" I asked, surprise.

"Indeed. Light reading for boring weekend. Interesting thesis. True or not, never hurts to prepare."

"Then welcome aboard, Professor. Honor to be working with you," Jacob offered a handshake, which Mordin accepted.

"Yes, very exciting. Collectors changing methods. Cerberus working with Aliens. Both unexpected. Illusive man branching out maybe? Not so human-centric?" I barked a short laugh and smirked.

"Sure as hell wouldn't say that. Just some extenuating circumstances. They're still the same pricks with a superiority complex they have been. But those on board aren't quite so aware of that."

"Understood. When specimen arrives, will require lab."

"There is a fully equipped lab on the CIC, just to the starboard side of the ship. If you find anything lacking, please place a requisition order, and it will be provided," EDI informed, her hologram not appearing just yet. Mordin was, comedically, though likely not intended as such, glancing around, searching for the source of the voice.

"Who's that? Pilot? No, synthesized voice, feminine, pilot male. Simulated emotional inflections. Could it be… no. Maybe. Have to ask. Is that an AI?" Mordin asked, surprised, but not… fearful? No sign of a negative response. I chuckled.

"Damn, nothing gets past you. Yeah, that's an AI alright. Surprised me, too."

"An AI on board? Non-human crew members? Cerberus more desperate than I thought," Mordin hummed. "Will examine lab. Remove bugs and see if equipment is adequate." He turned on a dime right out the door. Doesn't even have to see a bug first, knows they're there. I'm still surprised that a scan of my quarters confirmed that the only amount of surveillance was the vitals monitor in EDI's panel. Jacob, chuckling, took his leave back to the armory. And I got curious.

"EDI, how is it that we can contact TIM so quickly?"

"The Normandy is fitted with a Quantum Entanglement Communicator linked to the Illusive Man's office. Allowing instantaneous, lag-free communication even when off the comm grid, and in FTL."

"Surprise surprise," I whistled. "Should have expected QEC, but didn't think we had the tech yet," I murmured. "So, while the ship is on my mind, tell me about her. The drive core. What's different about that?"

"The Tantalus drive core has seen many smaller improvements since the latest iteration. Such as speed and efficiency, as well as a stronger power supply. The most notable improvement, however, is that now the Normandy is able to remain cloaked when entering and exiting FTL speeds."

"Very nice. Very nice indeed…" I nodded. "Shields and armor?"

"The kinetic barriers are standard for that of a ship this size, however, this is because of the limitations of Kinetic Barrier technology. As for armor, the Normandy utilizes a recent Asari development known as Silaris armor. It is made with carbon nanotube sheets that have been woven with diamond chemical vapor deposition, and crushed by mass effect fields into super-dense layers that can withstand extreme temperatures while compensating for diamond's brittleness."

"Nice, nice. So, I already know of the weapons, anything else I should know about?"

"There are no further unique upgrades to the ship, Commander."

"Sounds good, thanks." I decided to exit through the armor to give Mordin the time he needs.

"So, the professor is certainly, interesting," Jacob chuckled.

"I haven't worked with many Salarians in the past, but, yeah, none of them talked as fast as him," I remarked, deciding I'd try and talk to the man instead of just leaving. He noticed I was staying, and took that as his cue.

"So, I haven't gotten the chance yet, but I wanted to say that I'm proud and honored to be part of your crew. Doing something that matters."

"Might not be so eager if we end up like the last one."

"Maybe, but I think everyone involved plans to bring their best into this. Not saying the first one didn't, it just helps our odds is all." I just nodded and thought of a good subject change.

"So, what have you done for Cerberus? Before Lazarus, I mean."

"Technically? Lazarus was my first job officially working for them. But not my first run-ins. I left the Alliance after Eden Prime, having survived it. No, I didn't know Williams. But keeping long stories short, I met Miranda soon after. Think that was my first scouting. Took us to the Nemean abyss and back. Saved the Citadel from a Batarian bio-weapon. Got hushed real quick. Just like you," Jacob explained. Hm, certainly didn't hear about this. But I could check, and I don't think he wants to lie. "Basically, like pissing in black pants. Feels warm, no one notices. Next, I was drinking away after the Geth attack, and Miranda got me to help on another op. The more official scouting, I suppose. That was actually helping her try to find you. Turned into a small fiasco with slavers, but ended with us freeing a group and ending a slaver ring."

"Huh. Figured someone with your rank here would have had more time," I remarked.

"Probably Miranda's good word. And reports," Jacob shrugged. "If she's one of TIM's top operatives, whoever she scouts out wouldn't be put to grunt work."

"True."

EDI chimed.

"Commander, Doctor Chakwas is asking that you come to see her. She says, 'we keep forgetting to talk about something.'"

"Ah, right. Should probably go take care of those things," I murmured. I think one of them is the scars, but the other… my mother. That is… I have no idea how that's going to turn out. I wasted no time in getting to the medical bay, and Chakwas was at her desk, waiting.

"Scars first? Or your mother?" she asked.

"Scars first. Definitely scars."

"Let me get a look at them," she stood and grabbed me by the chin, turning my head, and studying the marks. They hadn't been burning since I woke up. Though I know they're still there. "Strange. Very strange indeed," she murmured to herself.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, actually. They're looking better. I don't know if you noticed, but when you first arrived on board, they were… flaring. Signs of adverse reactions to the implants. Not lethal, and mayhaps not even uncomfortable, but, very visible. But, since Garrus has been on board, and you've been in a better mood, they seem to be healing."

"Doc, you can't be suggesting that I just have to think happy thoughts to get rid of these scars. If they looked good, I'd consider keeping them, but the fact that they're a bit orange? I'd rather not keep them." Chakwas scoffed.

"While it seems that would work to help them heal, I understand life. And more importantly, I understand you. Part of life is the variety of emotions we have. No matter how hard you try, no one will always be able to have a positive outlook. Especially not in our line of work. Not while you're working with Cerberus. Not with what lies ahead. You died, you can't just smile and walk that off. Your death hurt people and I know you're already blaming yourself for it. If I were to recommend you heal these physical scars by never feeling angry, upset, depressed, I'd be condemning you. If you were to try, you would eventually break. And the outcome of that would be far worse than a few scars. No, absolutely not. Instead, a minor surgery will insulate these implants and accelerate the healing regardless." Well. She has me pegged. I took a deep breath and moved to lean against one of the medical beds, my hands propping myself up on it.

"You pull no punches, doc," I murmured.

"It's the benefit of knowing you since birth, but not having the rose tinted glasses of a parent," she chuckled. "Then again, I think if pressed, your mother would have been just as truthful."

"Sure you don't mean harsh?" I teased, in part to make myself feel better.

"Harsh my ass," she murmured. "I'm willing and able to do the procedure whenever. Perhaps during the trip to the Citadel? I'm sure you'll want to look nice for David and the Council." Anderson… damn, I'm sure my death hit him as hard as it did mom… and Tali.

"Sounds like a plan."

"Now. Your mother. You told me you wanted to talk about contacting her."

"Yeah," I scratched the back of my neck. "It definitely needs to happen before we reach the Citadel. No one's going to listen to claims of me being alive again if it comes from Omega. Probably a few freaks out there who took surgery to look like me. But, uh, I want to give her a choice. I just don't want to hurt her a second time." Chakwas was quiet for a moment.

"I can't say I don't see where you're coming from. But what I'm hearing so far is that you still wish to contact her?"

"Yeah. I thought maybe you could send a vague message. Something about asking her if she'd want a lost loved one back in her life if only to potentially lose them again shortly after. Depending on the response, ask her to call the ship within the next twenty-four hours have EDI route it to me. Or, if we miss one another, reschedule. If she wouldn't, then I'll do everything I can to hide on the Citadel. Keep me on the down-low."

"Yes…" Chakwas murmured. "I can do that."

"Thanks, Doc. Thanks."

"No need, you know that. Hm, times like these I wish I still had my private reserves?"

"Oh?"

"From the original Normandy. Even had a bottle of Serrice Ice Brandy I had been saving for a special occasion. Ah well, I suppose I can always get another when this is done," she mused. Ah, there's an idea.

"Maybe," I shrugged. "Well, we'll be staying here for another day, so I think Garrus and I should go get some clothes."

"Yes, you won't want to be wearing the same two pairs of clothes when Tali arrives," she teased.

"Would that be so bad? She wears the same one every day," I retorted.

"But hers has built-in sanitation," Chakwas chuckled.

"Semantics," I remarked. "See ya, Doc." She just gave me a nod, and I made my way to the gun battery. "Garrus," I began as the door opened. Then stopped, Garrus was in the middle of a call, judging as he was in the process of talking already.

"Uh, just a moment, Shepard. Yeah, I'm back with him. He's back again. And uh, I'm… sorry I didn't call sooner. I spent most of today in the field and yesterday, well, either recovering or forgetting." Garrus paused a moment. Listening. "I'm sorry, dad. I can't. Not just yet. Shepard needs me. And, well, it's something big." Another moment. "Yeah, I promise to explain if I make it back. And… tell Sol I miss her, alright? Thanks. Bye, dad." The call ended. I walked in at a bad time. He took a deep breath.

"Sorry, you had to hear that, Shepard."

"You know I'd be more than happy to go to Palaven, let you see them," I offered.

"You don't need to worry about it," Garrus tried to reassure. "It's my family, my choices, my mistakes."

"And as your friend, I want to help you through them," I pushed.

"Can we just, not, Shepard? Not right now, please," he pleaded. A defeated look in his eyes. I released a deep breath.

"Alright, I'll drop it for now."

"Thanks. So, what did you need?"

"Was just coming to get you to head out, get some real clothes. We can stop in Afterlife when we're done."

"Sounds perfect right now. I know the markets right by Afterlife are decent. Go there?"

"Lead the way. We'll grab shields and a pistol."

"Hm, never go anywhere without them. Especially here," Garrus managed a chuckle.

"Then let's go." We made our way to the elevators, and during the trip, I sent a quick message to Tali. Just letting her know we'd be staying put for a day. She can, of course, fill in the blank that that's time to leak her mission to me. We got what we needed from the armory, and disembarked the ship. Garrus leading me through the streets of Omega. Crowds of people from every species but Quarian, Drell, and Vorcha. The latter just because they're probably crawling through ducts or trash cans. And more than a few hookers calling out for… business.

Eventually, we reached the markets. Stalls and vendors lining the sides of what was basically a large bazaar. The higher end ones sporting some Krogan guards. There was also the smell of various foods being served. Some were familiar, hinting at human foods, others less so. Ranging from still being pleasant, to anything but. And a few looking like little more than just fried vermin. Or just mystery meat.

"There, that vendor's not black market. He's legit," Garrus pointed to a larger vendor who had himself a storefront, a back room, and even an aide. I could tell who the owner was, as Garrus was pointing right at him. A Batarian. Well, might as well. He saw us approach and didn't bat a single one of his four eyes.

"Human. Should have something for you. Now sure how much, but something. Should have more for your Turian friend."

"Caught you low on stock?"

"Me? Never. Thing is, I don't get many Human customers. Most Batarians they see here are Blue Suns. They're just skeptical that I won't press them for protection money," the Batarian shrugged. "Name's Marsh. You?"

"Sh-" I stopped myself. Let's not use the last name. "John."

"Garrus."

"Good to meet you both. Feel free to browse with your eyes there, but I've got a lot in the back. Here," he typed on his Omni-tool, and a display popped up on mine. Asking if I wanted to view the store's catalog. "Full list of everything I've got, and the price. You can make your payments there, and I can answer any questions, grab what you buy for you." I started browsing. Out of curiosity, I took a look at the armaments he had.

"Decent equipment you've got. Merc surplus?"

"No. Actually, have an old friend who got signed on by Elanus Risk Control. He's important enough that I can place some orders from time to time. At a deal too. Looking for recommendations?"

"I was just curious. My friend and I are not in need of weapons right now," I flashed my Phalanx at my hip. Not to threaten, just to show."

"Ah, a Phalanx. You military?"

"Grew up on the Citadel together. Still talked when he went off to boot camp and I enlisted. We had shore leave together, I thought we'd have some fun on Omega this time," I made up.

"Fun's definitely something you'll find here. Depending on your definition," Marsh chuckled. Man, this is the friendliest Batarian I've ever met. Garrus began chuckling.

"I see something perfect for Joker." He pointed to a shelf with magazines. My eyes followed his talon.

"Shit," I laughed. "I mean, I guess he deserves it."

"It's coming out of your credits," Garrus warned. I took a closer look.

"It's four credits and I'm getting sickeningly curious as to how he'll react. Fuck it." Marsh, smirking, retrieved the magazine and set it down. Causing Garrus and I to both burst into laughter. A Hanar that looked like it was trying to strike a sexy pose. Its underside facing forward, some of its tentacles behind the top of its… head? "Draw me like one of your French jellies." We continued browsing and found a few clothes that we could take. We only took ones that were plain. Not trashy shirts with half-naked Asari, or decals for some show or game we know nothing about. And I picked up a ship model too. If I have the displays, I might as well waste some time with it. We made the purchase and arranged for it all to be delivered to our ship. Only a small additional fee.

We left Marsh to his business and continued moving through the bazaar. To my surprise, I spotted a Quarian with a small stall, selling… salvage. Kenn's salvage. He was working on cutting some metals as he, unfortunately, was not getting much business.

"What's he doing here?" I muttered under my breath. I went over to take a look. Garrus following. When we arrived at his counter, he did a double take, noticing he had potential customers.

"Oh! Hello there. Any chance I could interest you in salvaged tech? Each credit goes toward my ticket off this Ancestor's forsaken rock." He was young. Has to be a pilgrim.

"You a pilgrim?" That question took him by surprise.

"You know about it? Yes. Yes, I am."

"Then what got you stuck here?"

"What credits I had got stolen within a few days. Decided to sell salvaged parts, but Harrot, another merchant, is forcing me to sell high. Can't afford a ticket like this." I gave Garrus a look.

"I see we're saving another Pilgrim, Shepard," he chuckled. Kenn tilted his head to the side.

"That name… sounds familiar."

"Commander Shepard. Tali'Zorah served on my crew during her pilgrimage," I explained. His glowing eyes went wide.

"Keelah, I didn't even know! I'm so sorry!"

"Don't worry about it," I reassured. "Look. I'm willing to do two things. First, pay for your ticket, right here, right now."

"I-I'm sorry, I can't just let you do that. It's-It's my mistake on my pilgrimage."

"Thought so. Then, a second option, but first, a question. If you're selling salvaged tech, I assume you have engineer training?"

"Yes, I worked engineering on my birth-ship."

"Then how'd you like to work engineering on mine? I'm sure you'd find a worthy gift out there."

"I-I'd be honored, sir!"

"No need for that, Kenn. But, I do need to warn you about one thing. Something unsavory. If you accept the offer, while you will not be working for them, you'll be working for me, you will be working alongside Cerberus."

"That is… unexpected," Kenn shuffled his feet.

"I understand completely. If it matters at all, I've learned that few are through and through loyalists. Plenty of the crew are new to the organization who joined only because right now, whole Human colonies are disappearing. That's what I'm up against. If you accept, you'll be working safe and sound in engineering. The two other engineers are good people and tossed aside their Cerberus logo once they learned what the organization has done," I explained.

"I haven't had any problems on board so far, Kenn. And I'd figure most of Cerberus hates Turians for Shanxi," Garrus shrugged. "Oh, and I don't think you'll be the only Quarian on board for long."

"Well… I suppose anything's better than Omega."

"You sure? I'd still be more than happy to just drop you off somewhere friendlier. And I'll be willing to let you go whenever you want. Wait, shit, forgot one last detail. There is a heavily shackled AI on board. Cerberus installed it before I even knew the ship existed. So far EDI's been friendly enough. All she does is monitor the crew."

"Keelah. This is… very, very strange," Kenn murmured. "But… I suppose I'll give it a shot."

"Great to hear. Now, what was it they needed again?" I hummed as I checked my Omni-tool. "Right. Any chance you got some T6-FBA couplings from NSD?"

"I do. A pristine set I found a few days ago. I'll bring them to the ship."

"Good. Go home, get your things together, and go here," I transferred docking information to his Omni-tool. "Garrus and I are going to be out and about a bit longer, so head there in a few hours, I'll get you situated."

"Thank you, Commander. I'll get the couplings and head home right away."

"See you there, kid." I turned to Garrus. "Afterlife?"

"Afterlife."

We wasted no time in making our way to the club, then took seats at one of the many bars. This one tended by a Turian. Hm, how to start talking to Garrus about what happened… I think I have a way to get to it. We got our drinks, and both took a swig.

"So, how different was living out here from what you expected."

"Hm… the firepower, maybe."

"How's that?"

"I thought I saw every kind of weapon in the galaxy during our campaign against Saren. I mean, plasma weaponry, Sovereign's gun? Nothing can beat those. But I was surprised out here. The amount of unconventional weaponry. Scrap metals and old mass effect accelerators combined together to just shoot rusty old nails. And it does it effectively. Or shooting sawblades. I mean, just, why? You know? What crazy bastard thinks of that?"

"My money's on Krogan."

"Probably right," Garrus chuckled. "Then Cerberus rebuilds you and the Normandy, both with a few upgrades. Maybe we should have joined up sooner," he tried to joke. It didn't land. He noticed. "Sorry. Just trying to help lighten it."

"I know, I know. Just, you know that feeling when you just know you're about to be ambushed at any moment? That tense, nerve-wracking feeling? Yeah, that's how I feel whenever I put even the slightest thought into them."

"Yeah. I know what you mean," Garrus murmured, taking another swig. "Not like I can doubt your judgment. Not after getting my own squad killed."

"Squad?"

"Wasn't it in the dossier they had on me? Not all the bodies you saw in that hideout were mercs and freelancers." I can't start telling him it's not his fault. He'll brush it right off because I haven't heard the whole story yet. Chances are if he brushes it off the first time because of that, once I have heard it, and say it again, he'll just brush it off again as just ignoring what he said.

"So… you made your way here after being fed up with more red tape?"

"Yeah. No red tape here, and to find a criminal, I just point my gun and shoot. People here needed someone to believe in."

"How'd you find your squad?"

"Not too different than how you did, actually. Prove you get things done, people join up. Everyone in my squad had lost someone to Omega. They followed me to make sure no one else would."

"And you were all vigilantes, taking down criminals."

"Right. No civilian casualties, just the criminals. They have a hostage, we save the hostage. Like you taught me." There's a hint in there. Think I have an idea, but let's try to piece more together first.

"Tell me about them." Now, a faint, ghost of a smile. "There were twelve of us. Former military operatives, C-Sec agents, the usual. Our demolitions expert was Salarian. And I'm certain he was STG. Tech was a Batarian, surprisingly. Not the friendliest, but a damn impressive hacker. Wonder if he could give Tali a run for her credits."

"And then?" Garrus sighed. He knew what I meant with that.

"And then I got them all killed. Really showed em all what I knew. We were betrayed. A Turian named Sidonis. The first one to join me, actually. He had been gone a few days before the attack, then called me for a meet up on a lead. I got there, found absolutely nothing. By the time I got back, all but two of my squad were dead. They didn't last long." Garrus then downed the rest of his drink, slamming the empty glass back down. "Everyone except me is dead because of him. Because I didn't see it coming."

"You sure he sold you out?"

"Absolutely. I put out feelers with some contacts I still have. He booked transport and emptied his accounts just before the attack. His trail vanishes just after he left. But I'll keep hunting. I lost my whole team except for him. One day, I'll find him. And I'll correct that," Garrus muttered with cold, quiet fury. It's reminding me of Dr. Saleon. Though, this is clearly far more personal.

"It's not your fault, you know." Garrus just signaled for a refill and took a swig. "The only people who count on their friends betraying them, are the people who don't have any friends."

"So much of it was off, Shepard. A new meeting place? Come alone? Why wouldn't he just go to the hideout?"

"Have you ever heard of the hindsight bias? The only thing that makes any of that suspicious, at least for a vigilante group, is when you already know the end result. If he didn't want to go to the hideout, maybe he thought he was being tailed. Wanted you to come alone? Again, being tailed, and maybe fear of an ambush. If I was in your shoes, I'd have made the same exact decisions." Garrus scoffed. "I'm serious." I put a hand on his shoulder. "You know I blamed myself for Akuze?"

"How could you have known it was a massive thresher nest? You were following a distress beacon."

"Yet I ordered my men to cross an open desert field because there could have been slavers around the beacon. Bringing them right over the thresher nest. Took me a long time to accept that I did everything I was supposed to do when approaching a potentially compromised distress beacon. To accept that it was the Threshers. Now, Cerberus. It's not easy, I know. Just, I'm here for you. Alright?" I patted his shoulder. Garrus turned his head, looking at me.

"Thanks, Shepard." He downed the rest of his drink. "There's… one last thing I want to do before we leave."

"Name it."

"I want to bury my men."


	11. Leak

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: A few things. First, the one-shot is coming along. Second, I'm reiterating something for this chapter. I have inspiration from Calinstel for Quarian language and culture. Not every aspect of the culture, but you'll see some of the language later. Third, I have a job, and am starting to consider one chapter a week. We'll see for now. All for now. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

Garrus and I returned to the Normandy, and started loading a shuttle with body bags. Zaeed saw us from the starboard cargo bay where he had set up shop, and came down to help.

"Lot of friends I've had to leave unburied," he said. "I'll help bury yours."

Ten body bags. One for each member of Garrus' team minus him, and Sidonis. To be safe, we were all armed and armored. If Kenn arrives before we're back, well, EDI knows to expect him. I took control of the shuttle, and we disembarked, Garrus helping guide me back to the hideout. Good thing flying these aren't too different than a sky car. Fancy flying requires training. Which, an N7 does have a limited amount of. When we arrived, I parked the shuttle on the bridge, just like during our evac. Bodies and scrap from mechs still littered it, surprisingly. Because this is a space station, even one as filthy as Omega, there were no decomposers. No insects to eat the bodies. It prevented the smell of rotting bodies. But still the smell of piss and shit that corpses leave behind.

"EDI, search the local net to see if you can figure out why this place seems untouched. Scavengers shouldn't have been able to resist the gear and loot." I didn't mention that the Vorcha shouldn't be able to resist the meat.

"I will keep you informed on what I find, Shepard," EDI answered. We disembarked, weapons out and ready. Moving inside the hideout. Bullet holes, explosive damage, and, of course, bodies. Garrus began identifying them. Some, harder to do so than others. He whispered the name of each body.

Melenis. Monteague. Erash. Weaver. Mierin. Grundan. Vortash. Sensat. Butler. Ripper.

"I'm sorry." Garrus murmured, once he finished.

"Shepard, I have concluded my search of the local net. It seems that currently, a superstition surrounds the hideout."

"Superstition?" I asked. Garrus was starting to pay attention. Though he was still staring at the gathered and bagged bodies of his men.

"While the official merc stories claim that Archangel is dead, there are locals who witnessed the extraction, watching a group of armed humans escorting a wounded Turian to a shuttle. These witnesses are claiming that Archangel lives. More religious elements are claiming that Archangel is, in fact, his namesake, or their religion's equivalent. Either way, scavengers and robbers refuse to enter the hideout for fear of retribution either by Archangel himself, or supporters. The Vorcha are sharing this fear, due to how many of their own killed. In addition, there are reports of copycat vigilantism across the station. They are so far small and isolated, but widespread." I looked back at Garrus, he was standing at least a little taller. I walked up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"You gave the people here hope, Garrus. You inspired them."

"Wish they could have lived to see it."

"I know exactly what you mean…" I've got a long list just like that. Ashley, dad, my people on Akuze… "How are we going to bury them?"

"Some of them still have family. Here on Omega. Let's lay them in the shuttle, head back to the ship. We'll take out those who don't have any family here, and then… then I'm going to bring the others back to their families." I notice he said 'I'm.' Not 'we.' He wants to do it alone.

"You sure?" Garrus just nodded. "Whatever you need to do." Carefully, respectfully, we laid the bodies out in the shuttle. Never piling them.

"There is… one last thing I left behind here. Zaeed, can you watch the shuttle?"

"Sure, go have your secrets," he shrugged. Obviously, Garrus wanted me to go with him. So, I followed him back into the hideout. Then into the second level. The opposite end of the building from where we held out. A master bedroom. His, but what's in here? He went over to the bed, and fiddled with the headboard. I heard a latch unlock, and then a slot opened. A rifle was released. The same rifle I gave him after Pinnacle Station.

"It was impossible to use effectively here, and I normally kept it hung on my wall, but I stashed it away, just in case. If I died, at least this would be safe."

"You really kept it all this time?" Garrus glanced back at me, hands still roaming over the rifle.

"It was a reminder… Come on, let's go."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

I watched as Garrus took the shuttle and flew it out of the cargo bay. Four of the ten bodies left behind. Zaeed and I moved them to the side of the cargo bay, laying them out beside each other. We'll see what Garrus wants to do with them when he returns.

"Shepard, Kenn has arrived at the ship." EDI informed. "Please bring him to XO Lawson so he may be properly logged. A crew member is bringing the couplings to engineering." Ugh… well, maybe it'll be a time to start asking about that biotic training. Though I'm not at all looking forward to talking to her.

"I'll be right up." Zaeed and I took the elevator up, though he just stopped a single level up, heading back to his cargo hold. I arrived at the CIC, and made my way to the airlock. It looked like Joker had been playing a game, though had just paused it.

"Hey Commander! Rescuing another Pilgrim?"

"Garrus already said that Joker, you're late," I retorted with a smirk. Kenn was standing in the alcove before the airlock. He was nervous, that much was obvious. The cloth covering his body was purple, like Tali's. Hm, there has to be meaning with the color. As for the pattern, it was more simplistic, a diamond pattern. "Welcome to the Normandy, Kenn. Don't mind Joker, he's an old friend, and knew Tali as well. He's not Cerberus at all. And neither is the ship Doctor. She also knew Tali, and knows how to treat Quarians in case anything happens.

"O-Ok. That's reassuring."

"Come on, I need to bring you to the XO, so you can be set up, then I'll show you crew quarters and engineering." Kenn just nodded, and followed me to the elevator. "My quarters are on deck one. You have any problems with any crew, don't hesitate to let me know. I'll sort things out."

"Thank you." The door opened, and I led him around and towards Miranda's office. He could clearly make out the mess hall, and see the medical bay. The crew eating were clearly a bit surprised to see him, and some whispering amongst themselves. For the first time ever, I opened the door to Miranda's office. She was sat at her desk in her catsuit. The desk was about the same size as my own, but had a pair of chairs in front of it. For some reason, my mind immediately compared it to a principal's office. To the left was an additional chair looking out a viewport, and in a "back room," not separated by a door was her bed, and I saw a small couch. I noticed Kenn stare at the only Cerberus logo still on this ship. Covering the wall left of the 'doorway' to Miranda's bedroom.

"Commander. Who might this be?" she questioned, hands clasped on her desk.

"Kenn'Hass vas Yanil," he introduced himself. "He's an addition to our engineering staff. I trust this won't be a problem?"

"It's unexpected, but I can add him to the logs. I trust he's qualified?"

"I worked engineering of my birth-ship for years."

"And is he aware of who's ship this is?"

"The ship is mine, but yeah, he's aware," I corrected. Lawson sighed.

"Will he be requiring payment?"

"N-" Ken began.

"Of course. The same payment as Donnelly and Daniels."

"Please link your Omni-tool," Miranda requested. Kenn hesitantly obliged.

"Welcome aboard."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"I'm going to show him crew quarters and then introduce him in engineering. Then… I'll be back to discuss biotics."

"Understood, Commander. I'll have a few materials ready." I nodded, and led Kenn towards the crew quarters. There were a small handful of crewmembers sleeping. Ones with a later shift.

"When you've got a sleep shift, just come on down here, pick a bunk, fall into it." Then, I brought him down to engineering. Entering from behind Ken and Gabby's stations. They heard the doors open.

"Ello, Commander. Who's this?" Ken asked.

"You're new co-worker, and the one responsible for those new couplings."

"Aye? Much appreciated, mate. You've saved hours of our day."

"Maybe we should let him introduce himself?" Gabby suggested.

"I'm Kenn. Kenn'Hass."

"Ken? Oi, hope you aren't my replacement," he teased.

"Oh, no, no, I'm sorry. I-"

"Ken, you're making him nervous," Gabby chastised. "Sorry, don't listen to him. He's only playing, him and his big mouth."

"Sorry lad. Just having a wee bit of fun. Glad to meet ya. I'm Kenneth Donnelly. I go by Ken, but maybe we can find a new nickname."

"Jackass sounds like a good one," Gabby suggested.

"One I'm worthy of. I like it!"

"I'm going to regret that… anyways. I'm Gabriella Daniels. Gabby's just fine though."

"I see you all have this under control. I'll leave you to it then," I stated. Beginning to leave.

"See ya 'round, Shepard. So, Kenn, let's show you the ol girl."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

Meditating. I'm meditating in the room of my least favorite person on this ship. This isn't even the strangest thing I've ever done, I've come back from the dead for fucks sake, yet it sure as hell feels like the strangest thing right now. All of this just to try and take an initial… influence of my new biotic abilities.

"Now clear your mind, and reach within," Miranda stated. I took a deep breath. This still felt a bit ridiculous, but I've seen what biotics can do. It's worth it. To reach within, I just thought… deeper, if that makes any sense. Not philosophy, but physically deeper in my head.

I felt something. A faint, tingling sensation around my body. I could feel my hair starting to stand on end. It felt electric. I opened my eyes, there was a faint, blue aura surrounding me. One which dissipated as my focus was lost. I still chuckled at seeing it. The sound caused Miranda to open her eyes. She was raising a brow.

"Well?"

"It started to work. Felt the tingling, then took a peek and saw the blue aura."

"Good, now we know you can still influence the implant. You need to continue doing the meditations. Do it for longer, sustain that biotic aura for longer. Let it envelop you like a large fur blanket. It will feel warm, and as you put it, tingly. You will feel either lighter or heavier. Once you can consistently reach that point, we will practice on purposefully manipulating mass. Where you will know whether you wish to make it heavier, or lighter, and do exactly that," Miranda explained. I won't admit it to her, but I kinda want to do just that as soon as I'm back in my quarters. I liked the feeling. But… ugh, that little nagging voice. She is part of my crew. I like to know who I'm working with. And… maybe, maybe, the more I learn about her, I could learn why she's so loyal to Cerberus. And then break that loyalty.

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. So," I began as we both stood. "You know more or less about me. I know next to nothing about you."

"Fair, if surprising. I suppose you should know I've had extensive genetic modification. Not my decision, but I make the most of it," she shrugged. "It's one of the reasons The Illusive Man handpicked me. I'm very good at just about anything I choose to do.

"What kind of modification are we talking about?"

"Very thorough. The kind of thorough that requires artificial conception, and then being developed in an artificial womb. Physically, I'm superior in many ways. Stronger, faster, healthier. I heal quickly, and I'll likely live half again as long as the average human. My biotic abilities are also very advanced, at least for a human. Add to that some of the best training and education money can buy, and, well, it's pretty impressive, really." It is impressive, but that almost sounds like cockiness. Even though her tone was more or less calm and unremarkable. So, the modifications weren't her choice, that's obvious, but bringing it up? Is she bitter about it?

"They design you for confidence too?"

"A side effect. These are facts, Commander. Not personal embellishments. No luck of the draw, just everything designed in a lab. My reflexes, strength, even my looks, all designed from the sperm and the egg to give me an edge."

"Fair enough," I shrugged.

"Now, if you wouldn't mind, the Illusive Man has requested that I keep him as up to date as possible regarding your biotic progress, and he's been waiting for a report since the start of the mission." Hm, no doubt wondering if it's viable for his own men. I left Miranda to it. I instructed EDI to alert me when Garrus returned, but before I could return to my own quarters, I did have a few things to do. I still had a shield generator on me, so I went to the armory to grab my pistol, then left the ship. Making my way to Afterlife. The line did not apply to me, as Aria had apparently singled me out to her bouncers. Zaeed's advice was sound. She's better for this station than the merc gangs. While I doubt they'll be able to move any time soon, maybe even want to make that move again, let's make sure they don't. The bodyguards by Aria's booth let me pass. None of her guests up there seemed to be getting sucked off under a table this time, fortunately. As for the pirate queen, she seemed surprised to see me.

"I take it you're not here to chat."

"You know me so well, and we've barely talked," I remarked. She just jerked her head to the side, signaling for me to take a seat. "Found a data pad with the Eclipse going after Archangel. Got all the information from it on my Omni-tool." I opened the display, and turned it so she could read. Setting it to translate into Asari. She read it carefully. Frowning, a fire burning in her eyes.

"Interesting." She then grabbed an empty glass beside her and threw it at one of her guards, the glass breaking against his forehead. The Batarian cried out in pain, and was bleeding. "Would someone like to explain how the _**fuck**_ this information slipped the net?!"

"I-I'll look into it," the Batarian answered, covering his forehead.

"You fucking better." Aria then turned to me. "Thanks for the heads up. Looks like I'll have to do a little… housecleaning, in my organization." she leaned back in her seat, staring at seemingly nothing. "My men will transfer credits to you as well as some supplies as thanks. And you can have a few rounds with any of the girls for free if you want. Or the boys. There's some of everything to choose from."

"I think I'll pass on the latter. But Zaeed was the one who recommended I give you the information," I hinted. I think this will make him quite thankful.

"Was he? Then I'll pass the offer along to him. You just made yourself his favorite man in the galaxy."

"Good to know." My Omni-tool was pinged. A message from Tali. I immediately opened it.

"Don't suppose that's more information I could use?"

"No, just the woman that's why I turned down your offer on the girls."

"Sounds like either an ex that turned you to the men, or the great Commander Shepard is seeing someone," Aria mused.

"Definitely not the former. I'll always turn that down. And that's all your getting out of me. I'll leave you to your house cleaning." Aria just nodded, and I read the message as I walked.

 _Shepard._

 _Attached to this message is both an encrypted data packet, and an encryption key. Hope to see you there._

 _Tali_

Time to find out where she's going. The moment I get back-

"Commander," EDI chimed in. "Vakarian is returning to the ship. He will arrive shortly." Ok, talk to him, and then see where Tali's going. I wasted no time in getting to the ship, arriving in the cargo bay conveniently at the same time the shuttle was touching down. The shuttle soon shut down and Garrus disembarked. He looked tired.

"You ok?"

"I will be," Garrus murmured.

"What are we going to do with the others?"

"Let them out into space when we're leaving this cesspool."

"Consider it done." We were quiet as we got to the elevator. "Tali sent a data packet and encryption key. Check it out?"

"Yeah. Would love to have something else on my mind." I selected deck one, as it's probably not a bad idea to decrypt it in there with some privacy. When we arrived, we took our seats on the sofa, and used the decryption key to unlock the data packet.

 _Shepard_

 _Don't respond to this message. I could get in serious trouble for leaking sensitive military information. Especially given the allegiance of some of your crew. No one will know this has been sent, as I was planet side purchasing mechanical supplies. But the Fleet will ask questions about how you arrived. I've already thought of a cover story they will be content with. Simply that Cerberus detected our ship as it traveled through the relay network, and once seeing we were heading towards Geth space, assumed I was aboard as I had told you there was an upcoming and important mission. They knew you wanted to have me back, and told you. In order for this to work, however, I am going to need you to arrive a day after we do. Don't worry, the first day we will be laying low, and will not be attracting attention._

 _The planet is Haestrom. A former colony world in the Dholen system, Far Rim cluster. We arrive a week and a half from today. The coordinates have also been attached._

 _Tali_

A week and a half. We'll be there.

* * *

 **Tali'Zorah**

And, send. Shepard should get that in a few hours.

"Tali?" a voice caught me by surprise. I turned quickly, immediately fearing that I was already caught.

"Wha-Oh, hello, Lana." I calmed myself down. She tilted her head to the side.

"Is something wrong? The supplies have been loaded. We're ready to return to the Fleet."

"No, no, Lana. You just surprised me," I reassured.

"My apologies. Shall we?" I nodded, and we began returning to the ship. Just a small freighter to take these supplies, and then distribute them to the proper ships. "It looked like you were sending a message. Was it to your old Commander?" No harm in telling her that piece of truth.

"Yes, we'd like to keep in contact, and right now, he needs those he can trust at least to talk to him, from time to time. Thank the ancestors he has Garrus there with him."

"Strange that a Human and Turian are friends." I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Shepard's more than just a Human. At first, he was acting as a mentor to Garrus, and later the friendship started to grow. They respect each other quite a lot." Lana didn't verbally respond, just nodded, and we continued walking. Ignoring the occasional stares from the locals. This world is just a frontier Asari colony. Established, but not fully developed like Illium. "Heh, I guess it means I'm keeping that promise," I chuckled as an old memory resurfaced.

"Promise?" Lana asked.

"When the Saren campaign was nearing its end. Shepard made Garrus and I both promise him we'd keep in contact with him when we eventually went our separate ways." Lana turned her head towards me, her body language saying that she was smiling. As was my own.

"It's good to see you smiling again. You never did after you returned from your pilgrimage. You started again the day you saw him again. You care for him, as he cares for you." I was blushing. Starting to sweat as I sputtered.

"Lana! What-what are you-" She burst into laughter.

"Relax, girl. We grew up watching Fleet and Flotilla together. And for how long have I been gushing to you about Kal? I'm happy you found your Bellicus."

"Lana!" I tried to pull my realk down over my visor.

"Tali, please," Lana chuckled. "I won't tell anyone."

"You realize this means I get to ask you questions now, right?"

"Fine, I suppose I owe you," Lana calmed herself and I released the grip on my realk.

"Have any luck with Kal?"

"Ugh, males. Their heads are thicker than a dreadnaught's hull. I'm showing every sign I can, short of walking into his room naked. And even then, he'd avert his eyes, and rush me to the medical bay so I wouldn't get sick, then completely forget about it! Just the other day, I grabbed his hand, rubbed his palm with my thumb, and even ran a hand across his arm, complimenting his muscles! And he did nothing in return! He thanked me, but didn't touch me! No hand on my hip! No hand on my arm! By the ancestors, does he prefer men?" Oh, I know he doesn't. He's gushed to me about Lana before. But there is absolutely no way I'm telling her that. It's just too much fun.

"I promise you, he absolutely does not prefer men. He's told me before about women he finds quite attractive."

"Maybe next time I should just grab him by the oms and drag him into a clean room," Lana murmured, frustrated.

"That's certainly… forward."

"A girl has needs, Tali. Needs that nerve stim doesn't always fulfill."

"If you'd excuse me, I'm just going to wash all of those images from my brain."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: If you don't know what the Quarian words mean, you can infer for this chapter, but for things like the realk, Shepard is going to ask about that and that will be the explanation for the rest of you.**


	12. Jailbreak

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Alright guys, bit of bad news with this one. Or good, if you're a glass half full kind of guy. So, to be safe, as I don't want to rush my work or stress myself out for when I add school to my weekly schedule, I'm going to reduce the uploads to once a week on every Monday. The place I work is closed on Mondays and as my school schedule is now, I don't have school on Mondays either. Strange turn of events that is. Looking forward to Mondays. After having worked for a week, I've come to realize just how little time I really have left. Either from being dead tired when I get home, or sleeping in because of a hard night at work the previous day. Anyways, it's not impossible that the regular schedule could resume in the near future as either I get more used to it or I overestimate how much time school and work are really going to take. So. I wouldn't expect a chapter on Friday.**

 **But… a thought I'm toying with. DEPENDING on my work schedule, I.E. like this week, where I have both Monday and Tuesday off, I MIGHT get uploads on Fridays as well. These will not be guaranteed, nor will you be alerted to them. I don't want to get any hopes up if I can help it, and I want to be cautious about biting myself in the ass and not being able to upload the following Monday. Either way, this will ONLY happen when I don't have a commission that I need to get done. So, I'll be working on that a good deal tomorrow. Anyways, hope you enjoy, and hope y'all are alright with my decision. Thanks!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

The Collector Drone had arrived as scheduled, and Mordin quickly got the little bastard secured in his lab. As for our next destination, I took some time to think. On one hand, Dr. Okeer could be in some trouble with the Blue Suns. On the other, he's a Krogan who's been there for a while already. And not to mention, it's possible that the Blue Suns holding Jack might learn we've been screwing with them, and go back on the deal. Not to mention, that's all in the Hourglass Nebula, which is basically right next door to Omega. Throw in the fact that the Relay network has a few primaries around Omega, getting Jack, and then Okeer is a relatively simple matter. So, Purgatory it is. Now, onto less pleasant matters…

The elevator doors opened to the cargo hold. Metal coffins were waiting for the remaining bodies. Garrus and I moved to place the bodies within. One by one. Joker was slowly taking the Normandy out of the Omega asteroid belt, and making way towards the proper Mass Relay. Only at normal speed, until we were done. Garrus, understandably, wasn't saying a word. And so, neither did I. As each coffin was filled, we lined them up, feet facing the cargo bay doors.

"Joker, it's ready," I informed through the comms.

"Aye, aye, Commander. Holding position." Garrus ran one last hand over each coffin, whispering something I couldn't make out. We returned to the elevator and took it up to engineering. The doors opened, and we watched from the observation.

"Venting the hold," EDI stated. There was no visual change in the cargo hold, but the door to Zaeed's quarters opened, and the merc stepped out. He didn't say anything, but he didn't need to. Just took a spot to watch. The doors behind us opened, Kenn, Ken, and Gabby stepping out. I was a bit surprised, I wasn't spreading this information that much.

"How'd you hear?" I asked.

"Part Chakwas, part noticing the body bags," Gabby answered quietly.

"I wasn't on Omega that long, but long enough to breathe easier thanks to them," Kenn added. "I thank you, and them, Archangel."

"It's… it's just Garrus. Thanks," the Turian murmured.

"Oh, sorry G-"

"Shh," Gabby gently silenced the Quarian. "Just let him be." Kenn followed the recommendation. Next was the elevator. Joker, helped by Chakwas stepped out and took positions by the front. Followed by plenty of other crewmembers. Mess Sergeant Gardner, Jacob, and even Mordin stood out.

"Thought you'd be in the lab, Professor," I mentioned.

"Approved of Archangel and team's actions. Left impact on patients. Their loss unfortunate. Will pay my respect," The Salarian explained.

"Hold has been vented," EDI stated. "Shall I open the cargo bay doors?"

"Yes," Garrus answered. The doors began to open on his command. The artificial gravity in the hold was also disabled, and the coffins began to float up. Then EDI, manipulating the artificial gravity, reactivated it, but gently pushed the coffins towards space. I noticed a faint orange light in the distance. A pulsating one. It wasn't the local star, but the strange orange light of the Omega 4 relay. It was almost haunting, this funeral service in sight of the object that will mark the end of this mission. One way or another.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

"So, what do we know about Purgatory? And what are the odds of them turning on us?" I questioned. The entirety of the ground team with the exception of Mordin, as I wanted him to finish his initial research on the drone, were gathered in the meeting room on CIC."

"It's a repurposed Ark ship. Instead of agricultural animals and supplies, it holds prisoners now. Sometimes taken in battle, sometimes sold to them by politicians claiming subcontracts and outsourcing. Rumors suggest that the Blue Suns will sell skilled and or fit prisoners to Batarian slavers. The official population is four-thousand-three-hundred-fifty. However independent journalists claim that it can be nearly three times larger during periods of overcrowding."

"Makes sense. The Blue Suns wouldn't care about keeping the prisoners comfortable. They probably only keep them alive for some kind of extortion," Zaeed grumbled.

"As for betrayal, they could make a hefty profit off of you, Commander. Not sure if they'll value it more or less than what Cerberus is offering, but I'd keep a weapon on me," Jacob recommended.

"While the deal has been struck, is waiting until we're at the Prison ship and retrieving Jack. They could try to double down and betray us as soon as the transfer has finished," Miranda pointed out.

"Hm… Miranda, I want you to stay on board and organize the crew for a potential defense. I don't want them pushing out into the station, just protecting the Normandy from any sabotage or any troops looking for extra prisoners. The rest of you, and I think I'll pull Mordin from the lab, will be with me."

"What if they recognize Zaeed?" Garrus asked.

"Not impossible. It'll either go like Tarak, and they don't mind, or worse, and they want to claim the not so little bounty on my head. I'll wear a helmet, though it might not matter." Zaeed shrugged.

"Remind me that you still need to tell me that whole story sometime," I remarked. I got on the intercom. "Mordin, change of plan. You're in the field with me."

"Understood. Will be ready," the Salarian responded.

"Joker, how far out from the station?"

"Exiting FTL in fifteen minutes, Commander. Not sure how long it'll take for docking clearance."

"Understood. Miranda, organize what crewmembers you can for the defense before we dock. Rest of you, let's get to the airlock.

Getting clearance to dock didn't take nearly as long as one would expect, and that's probably a bad sign. Well, good thing I pulled Mordin from the lab at least. He was armed with an M-9 Tempest and while he arrived with a Carnifex, was happy to take the upgrade of a Phalanx. And, like the rest of the team, the doctor was wearing a helmet. All of us were as protected as we could be. Though my own helmet was in its unsealed state. Just waiting for any sign of a vacuum or gas. The ship docked, and we disembarked. A security checkpoint staffed by Blue Suns just outside the docking tube. Over the security checkpoint, what seemed like additional security. Consoles waiting for the input to lock the area down, the entire wall being glass, so they could see us. A Turian guard at the center of the 'pack' spoke up.

"Welcome to Purgatory, Shepard. Your package is being prepped, and you can claim it shortly." They know who I am? I glanced back at Jacob.

"Cerberus had to let them know who would be picking Jack up," he shrugged. Makes sense.

"As this is a high-security vessel, you'll need to relinquish your weapons before we proceed."

"No." The guard was clearly surprised at such an immediate, and… uncooperative response. And from someone so, high profile, let's call it. He and the other guards nervously glanced amongst each other. No longer standing as rigid. The door behind the guards opened, and another Turian stepped through. This one without a helmet. And without colony markings.

"Stand down, stand down," the Turian spoke, I suppose easing his men, as they stood to the side. "Commander, I'm Warden Kuril, and this is my ship. Your weapons will be returned on the way out. You must realize this is just standard procedure."

"Look, Warden, we can be reasonable. Tell you what," I slowly pulled out my pistol, keeping it folded so not to cause much alarm. "I'll relinquish all my bullets. One at a time. Where do you want them?" I asked. Smirking. Ok, I'm really glad to have just come up with that one on the spot. That's absolutely a line I'm going to make sure gets into my biography someday. Kuril frowned, and stared at me, I stared back.

"Let them proceed," he relented. "Our facility is more than secure enough to handle five armed guests." I gave a mock bow. "We're bringing Jack out of cryo. As soon as the funds clear, you can be on your way. If you'll follow me," he gestured, and we began to do just that, the guards letting us by. "I'll bring you to Out-processing for the pickup." The doors opened to a secure hallway, lined with thick glass, no doubt resilient to every conceivable form of damage a space prison can expect. Not unbreakable, no, nothing is, but the point stands. I took note of the weapon that the Warden had on his back, a Revenant.

"Cellblock two," the Warden pointed out and down. Cells stacked along the walls, horizontally, and vertically. Only a small handful walking around, their equivalent of yard time, I'd bet. With plenty of guards patrolling, watching. "As you can see, we keep tight control over the population." There was a pair of large mechanical arms that reached in and grabbed two cells, moving them to wherever they needed to be. "Each prisoner's cell is a self-contained, modular unit. I've blown a few out the airlocks as an example." With or without their prisoners, I wonder. Also, funny, I don't recall asking him about the facility. Could be pride, could be… a warning. "This ship is made up of thirty identical blocks. We house thousands of criminals. Wonder what that number would be if they counted the Blue Suns on board. "We can put the whole station or just a single block on complete lockdown on a moment's notice. Nothing goes wrong here."

"Must be expensive," Garrus mused.

"We can cut corners that Governments can't. And each prisoner brings in a fee from their home world. These individuals are violent, and their home planets pay well to keep them here."

"And if they don't?" I asked.

"We explain that we can't maintain the prisoner without their help, so we'll be forced to release him back onto his home world. At an undisclosed place and time."

"Extortion. Knew it," Zaeed grumbled on the comms, ensuring Kuril didn't hear.

"And what can I expect from Jack?" Well, surprise surprise. I saw nervousness, fear, even, flash in the warden's eyes. He wrung his hands as he answered.

"Cerberus hasn't told you? Jack is the meanest handful of violence and hate I've ever encountered. Dangerous, crazy, and very, very powerful. You'll see soon enough." Hm, not sounding good. Maybe we can win some points from Jack since we freed them? Hm, might just look at it like we bought them instead. Going to have to tread very carefully. I looked down to see two of the prisoners start throwing punches at one another. Then, a security pillar extended, and trapped both of them in a mass effect field, pulling them apart from each other, and letting four guards rush in the barrier drop, and then beat the shit out of them.

"I'm going to confirm that the funds from Cerberus have cleared," the Warden explained as another set of doors opened. "Out-processing is just down this hallway. Just keep going past the interrogation rooms, and the supermax wing," he gestured and began walking down a different hall. Hm, a lackey could just confirm it over the comms for him. He's not joining us for this? That's sketchy. At least we're ready. The Blue Suns guards watching over the cell blocks paid us no heed, and we returned the favor. We walked past the interrogation cells, one of which had a Turian guard watching a cell with a human prisoner being beat senseless by another Turian guard. He was on the ground, his arm clearly broken, crying out in pain. No idea what the man did, but it's not right. Still, I thought better of intervening here. There's already enough that's fishy here. I want to just get Jack, and get out.

"No one walks away from torture unchanged," Zaeed muttered. "Not the tortured, or torturer. Never found it worth the price myself."

"Ineffective. Stress and trauma will cause victim to create new, false information out of desperation to cease the pain," Mordin thought out loud. As we passed more interrogation cells, some prisoners tried to get our attention. Some trying to be friendly, some trying to be threatening. Some just ranting batshit crazy talk. We ignored them all. Just following the hall to out processing. A door marked it opened to a large, mostly empty room. A lone human working a terminal in Blue Suns civvie garb. Basically, just a T-shirt with their logo. There were desks with other consoles, they were all unmanned. A single small door at the other end.

Poor cover, a door in what's little more than an open field, if they're going to stab us in the back anywhere… I glanced back at the others, giving them a nod. Be ready. Hm, at the very least, on the left side of the room are some large metal mechanical equipment that should still make sufficient cover for one person each. The desks? Yeah, those sure as hell aren't stopping bullets. We approached the door, thumbing our pistols. The door opened. A prison cell. Kuril's voice appeared on the intercom, and the worker who was once in the room just ran out.

"My apologies, Shepard. But you're more valuable as a prisoner than a customer. Drop your weapons, and proceed into the cell. You will not be harmed. Unfortunately for Zaeed, I can't say the same for when Mr. Santiago gets his hands on him." I gestured for Mordin to take cover behind one of the equipment sets as his armor is light, and Jacob took the other. Garrus, Zaeed, and I took a knee and watched the door, rifles trained on it, waiting for a hint of movement.

"Go fucking figure. You're just another two-bit slaver like half the scumbags on this station. Go fuck yourself, Kuril," I growled.

"You asked for this, Shepard," Kuril muttered. A fireteam of Blue Suns stormed through, leaving themselves just as open as we were to our fire. But we were ready, and they were unable to use the walls on the outside of the door on their side for cover. Too narrow. It was a killing field. As those guards fell over, Zaeed, Garrus and I took the opportunity to rush forward, making it to the middle of out-processing before getting back on a knee. Taking out another wave of guards who tried to rush in, this time with FENRIS mechs. Our shields were taking hits. The downside of getting closer meant that we were easier targets. That wave fell, our shields began recharging as we made it to the door, taking cover along its sides. I took cover against our left side of the door. I had taken a knee and was able to lean out to fire. Garrus would do the same, but standing behind me. Another fireteam of guards came for us, but with our superior position, and support from Mordin and Jacob, we put them down. I got on comms for this downtime.

"Miranda, they've turned on us. We'll fight our way to Jack, and return to the ship. Do you read?"

"We read you, Commander. EDI's watching for hostiles, and we're gathered at the airlock."

"Good," I got off the comms and sighed. "Why the fuck can't it ever be simple? Credits were offered, and a deal was made! How much did Cerberus offer anyway? I mean, Jesus fuck, it's not like these bastards are hurting for credits!" This time, half a dozen Blue Suns tried to rush, and they were able to use the corner of the hallway for cover. Not as good as ours, but not better than nothing. "Oh, fuck off!" I shouted as I opened fire.

"Eat shit, you blue bastards," Zaeed growled as he primed, cooked, and threw a grenade around the corner. Some of the mercs cried out just before it detonated. Causing heavy damage to the glass at the very least. We rushed forward to take position along the corners. The Blue Suns were dead and dismembered, the metal of the corridor warped and damaged.

"Move up, watch your step," I ordered. Mordin and Jacob regrouped with us, and we pushed. Kuril said out processing was past the Supermax. Given how he described Jack, I bet that's where they are. Not to mention, that's where most of the Suns had been coming from. The path to the Supermax was clear, but as the door opened, the same technician who ran was inside with a pistol. He fired a single round at us before Zaeed put one right in his skull. This room overlooked a room with two Ymir mechs standing guard. And, a console just before the glass. It was security controls. I linked with my Omni-tool. I could do it myself, like a slow organic, or get an AI to do it with quantum computing.

"EDI, find Jack, open their cell."

"Acknowledged. Alert, I cannot get access to individual cell controls. It may be on a separate system. However, I have a bypass that will open all cells in your cellblock."

"Should make for a nice distraction," Garrus mused.

"Do it." A mechanical arm in the room ahead raised. Ah… this is Jack's cell, isn't it? Let's just hope they don't piss off the YMIR's right away. But… where the hell is Jack? The arm bent down to a circle on a raised platform on the floor. Gas was released, and it turned, raising the circle, and the essential canister it was attached to. Ah, a cryo cell. There was… a woman, with a shaved head, nothing but leather straps covering… well, only really the nipples on her small breasts, orange cargo pants, and absolutely covered in tattoos strapped to a table. A metal clamp on both her wrists and around her neck.

"Well… Jack's different than I expected," Garrus remarked. Her fingers began to twitch, and she jerked awake, eyes opening wide, grimacing as she came to. The clasps must have been in the process of releasing, as her right arm broke through, tried to open the one on her neck, then broke her left arm free to pull it open. She almost fell to her knees but caught herself, breathing. The YMIR mechs readied themselves, warning her. She ran a hand over her face, taking in her surroundings. Readying herself for a fight and-oh for fuck's sake, a third YMIR? They really were terrified of her. She glowed blue, pulled herself back, and launched.

"Damn it! Get moving! We didn't get stabbed in the back for a fucking corpse!" I exclaimed. We took a door and ran down. An explosion shook the ground. Shit. The door to the cell opened and… the fuck?! Not one, not two, not three, but four fucking YMIR mechs lay as smoking, warped piles of rubble on the ground. And a hole essentially punched through a wall. The ship alarm blared.

"All guards: restore order!" Kuril ordered through the ship intercom. "Lethal force authorized, but don't kill Jack! Techs: Lockdown! Lockdown!" We followed the hole into what seems like a maintenance corridor. Already half a dozen dead, mutilated guards inside. We heard more explosions, so I sealed my suit.

"Sectors seven, nine, and eleven have lost life support," the Ship VI informed. "No survivors."

…What the fuck has this woman done? We followed the carnage into a cell block that was… on fire. Rubble from the ceiling collapsed, cells broke, the armored halls, broken. One of the mechanical arms then collapsed.

"One girl did all this?" Zaeed muttered. She must have hit something critical. A fuel line or something. It's the only thing that makes sense. Guards and prisoners were in firefights, bodies already strewn about. So, Jack wasn't stopping to kill just everyone. Only those getting in her way. So, not completely batshit, I suppose.

"All prisoners! Return to your cells or I will open every airlock on this ship!" Kuril screamed into the intercom. It wasn't seeming to work. With the element of surprise, we joined the firefight, putting down both prisoner and Blue Suns alike.

"Warning: power plant damage has led to overload. Core systems failure imminent," the VI warned. We made our way into the next part of the cell block, "The hull has been breached in sectors twelve, fourteen, and thirty. No survivors. The Blue Suns here seemed to have just gotten the prisoners here back under control. By killing them. So, they had just begun taking a breather when we charged in and opened fire. Acting significantly more intelligent than the prisoners. Ah, a YMIR mech. Wonderful. That's how they got it under control. We spread out. Whoever got pinned, stayed in cover while Mordin, Garrus, and I barraged it with tech attacks, keeping its shielding down while we broke through the armor to its critical systems. Now, the next section. Prisoners were being gunned down, some taking cover. And I recognized who was gunning most of them down. Kuril had taken an elevated position with his Revenant and was protected by one of the mass effect fields those security pylons emit. Wait, ah, clever. I followed the beams and noticed three separate ones were protecting him. Combine it with a VI, and he can probably get an opening in the shields right where he fires, for as long as he fires. His attention was taken by another prisoner, so we took the opportunity to move forward, getting cover.

"You're valuable, Shepard," he called out. Firing at us just as we got our cover. "I could have sold you and lived like a king. But you're too much trouble. At least I can recapture Jack!"

"Oh, shut up with your whining and let's get this over with!" I shouted back. He just cried out and fired what seemed like a full thermal clip into my cover. Thick metal crates behind a metal barrier meant for cover. Would have torn it to shreds I bet, but it got wildly inaccurate the longer he followed. "Kill the mercs, and move around to get eyes on the generators." One was already in our line of fire, as well as a small fireteam of mercs. Tech attacks on their shields, bullets to the brain, bullets to the generator, and Kuril's shield weakened. One generator was to the right, and another, the left. But the right, we had an advantage. The mercs were gathering closer to Kuril. And there was a sweet spot where we could shoot the generator while being out of Kuril's line of fire. When that generator fell, I fell back, and we regrouped to push down the left. We pinned down or killed the mercs, and easily put a few rounds in the generator. Leaving the Warden not so confident.

"Take down his shields, I'll finish him off," I ordered. Mordin and Garrus both sent an overload the Warden's way, draining his shields instantly as I lined up a shot with my sniper. He noticed too late. His head turning to mine, eyes wide as I pulled the trigger. His head exploded in bone and brain and blood.

"Commander, I have detected Jack. She is approaching the ship. You are in the cell block you would have first seen upon entering the prison," EDI informed. I looked up at the corridor, and there she was, running along. I looked for a way up. A staircase labeled as authorized personnel only. As good a start as any. We ran on up and found we picked the right path just in time to see Jack engage two more guards. They turned to fire, but she picked up one guard with her Biotics and slammed him into the glass damaging it, breaking his neck, as she charged the other. Screaming. She sent him flying with a biotically charged punch. She saw the ship, getting a closer look at it as another guard ran up, and was just readying his weapon. I put a round right in his skull, getting Jack's attention in the process. She glared at me, as my rifle was still raised, as were the others. I lowered my weapon. She relaxed her stance but was still clearly ready to jump back into a fight at any moment.

"What the hell do you want?" she questioned. Jacob, Zaeed, and Garrus also lowering their weapons. She sounded to be in her early twenties.

"The name's Commander Shepard. Came here to buy your freedom, but The Warden thought he could make some extra money off of me," I shrugged.

"You don't expect me to believe that the Alliance would pay to free me, do you?" she countered.

"Never said the Alliance did. I'm going after the Collectors, and some really rich assholes thought you might be able to help me." Her eyes narrowed further, suspicious.

"And those assholes are?" she was pacing back and forth, glaring at us still.

"Cerberus." Her biotics glowed bright, and she growled.

"I'm not going any-fucking-where with Cerberus," I smirked.

"I see you and I are going to get along just fine then. I don't know what they've done to you, but they've done plenty to me too. I'm only putting that aside temporarily because millions of lives are at stake."

"I don't buy it. You show up with Cerberus to take me away somewhere. You think I'm stupid?"

"Look, Jack, this ship isn't going to last long. You can die here, or come with us. Your choice."

"We could knock her out and-" Zaeed began.

"I'd like to see you try," Jack growled, glowing blue again.

"I'm no kidnapper, Zaeed. This isn't one of your bounties."

"Fair enough," he shrugged.

"You want me to come with you? Make it worth my while," Jack stated, stepping closer. Still, more or less, just as angry.

"Credits, a weapon, whatever, you got it. I am perfectly happy to spend Cerberus resources."

"Your ship Cerberus?"

"Built by them, yeah."

"Then I bet it has plenty of databases. I want everything they have on me."

"Agreed. You'll have to pass that along to my XO though. I don't really think I have much access myself. Still, I'll order her to give you her clearance."

"You better be straight up with me," Jack warned.

"Take it from me. When Shepard keeps his word," Garrus remarked.

"Bloody boy scout he is," Zaeed chuckled.

"Then why the fuck we standing here still?" Jack questioned. I activated my comms.

"Miranda, stand down. It's us coming through. And Joker, I want us gone the moment we step inside."


	13. Junkyard Dog

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: First off, gotta say, damn good thing I shortened my schedule. Why? Work kicked my ass this week and I wasn't able to get this chapter done until today, actually. Going forward, remember, school does start this week, so it ain't changing. I need time both to write, do work, (school and actual work) as well as fun for my sanity. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed! I think next chapter will largely be on the Normandy.**

 **Commander John Shepard**

Currently, the Normandy was on its way to Korlus, while Joker dropped an anonymous tip to the Turians, as their space is closest to Purgatory, about what happened. They can secure any surviving prisoners. Meanwhile, I was getting Jack to the briefing room. Miranda, I noticed, was also following. Clearly sizing her up, making her judgments of the half-naked woman. Who, I might add, was getting plenty of stares from the crew. And judging by the reactions of the crew, returning those stares with daggers. That going double for all who wore the Cerberus logo. Garrus and Jacob were also following out of what I would call, morbid curiosity. After all, the first glance that the two women shared spoke wonders as to how well they'll… get along. Jack's eyes darted all across the armory as we passed through.

When we arrived in the briefing room, Garrus and Jacob both just leaned against the back wall, watching it unfold, while I leaned my back against the table, hands resting on it. I was just about to begin when Miranda, standing rather straight, began pacing in front of Jack, hands behind her back. Jack was already over it. Arms crossed over her chest, and brow raised.

"Welcome to the Normandy, Jack. I'm Miranda Lawson. Shepard's second in command. On this ship, we follow orders."

"Tell the Cerberus Cheerleader to fuck off, Shepard. I'm here because of our deal," Jack looked past Miranda to me.

"Deal?" Miranda turned to me.

"In exchange for her cooperation, she'd get access to all files Cerberus has on her."

"That's-"

"Me giving you a direct order. I don't expect you to have the clearance for all files on her, but what files you can, you will give her." Miranda sighed.

"Hear that, precious?" Jack mocked. "We're going to be friends. You, me, and every embarrassing little secret."

"And, for the record…" I continued. "If anyone here can speak for me when I'm not around? It's absolutely Garrus. The only reason you're my XO is because of TIM, and the fact I don't want to put all that paperwork on Garrus. You're TIM's voice on this ship. Not mine." Jack certainly looked smug, pleased with Miranda's frustration. I couldn't see behind me, but I feel like Jacob was holding back a chuckle of some sort, and Garrus wouldn't have held one back, but I think my mention of him being my true second surprised him. Even though it absolutely shouldn't.

"I'm going to go read all those little files in the hold. Or somewhere near the bottom. I don't like a lot of thru traffic," Jack began to walk away.

"Hold on, Jack. I do need to talk to you about a few things first. Then, free to go wherever. Rest of you? Dismissed. Now it was Jack's turn to look annoyed. But, the others left at my command.

"What do you want?" she asked, a bit suspicious, as the door closed behind her.

"Just a few things to keep in mind. Some of them, orders. While Miranda was being uptight, she is right that I expect you to follow my orders. Luckily for you, I honestly don't care where you go on this ship or what you do. Short of fighting. Save the violence for whoever shoots us. Second, while I also don't give a shit what you wear, or… don't wear, on this ship," I gestured to her torso. Causing her to raise a brow again. "When we are in the field, when we are leaving this ship for a combat op, you will wear armor. Light, medium, heavy, I don't care, but you will wear armor. To properly give you shields on top of the biotic barrier, to lessen the odds of one lucky shot taking you down, and so that you can seal yourself off from the environment. Toxic shit, a vacuum, et cetera, et cetera. Finally, on the field, you're part of a team now. If I tell you to warp, you will warp. If I tell you to shoot, you will shoot. If I tell you to move somewhere, you will move somewhere. The only reason you will not be if you are pinned down by heavy fire. If you are, communicate that with the rest of us, and we will give you an opening. Your life is one of my concerns, but it is not the only life I am concerned with. My orders are crucial both to keeping everyone alive, and the success of the mission. Understood?"

"Yeah, yeah, fucking whatever. I won't run into battle with my tits out, I'll be a good girl for your squad, and I won't go looking for a fight on here. But keep your people the hell off me. Better that way."

"Anyone gives you problems, let me know. Dismissed." Jack wasted no time in bailing and no doubt searching for her new little nook on this ship. Now, for myself… let's see. No time to practice meditating for my biotics, not hungry… I'll go see Mordin. Haven't had the chance to talk to him yet. I exited the comm room, making my way to the lab. As I went to open the door, it locked, and a decontamination process began. Ah, I see. This hallway, as well as the small alcove when entering the lab directly from CIC, are decon units for when the lab's in use. The process finished, and I stepped inside the lab. Mordin was standing at the central lab table, using a terminal with four different monitors. He perked his head up over those monitors to see who had entered. There was a thunking sound before he spoke. I turned to see the Collector drone ramming itself against its containment unit.

"Too well reinforced to break containment. Drone does not seem to be learning. Curious organism. Part organic, part synthetic. Uses nerve agent to induce paralysis in victims. Like insect bite," Mordin explained. "No antidote yet, but working on it."

"Good to hear, Professor. How do you like the lab?"

"Very satisfactory. Found a few surveillance bugs, as expected. Destroyed most, returned expensive one to Miranda."

"I already did a check of my own quarters, but… I don't think I'd mind you checking."

"Would be happy to. Just let me know when. Back to lab equipment, impressive technology. Nice to be working for project with budget. AI in particular, very helpful. Best setup I've seen since work with Special Tasks Group."

"Must have been aggravating working with so little on Omega," I remarked.

"No! Not at all. Limited facility presents challenge," Mordin leaned against the table, smiling. Part seemed pride, another… eagerness. "Save greatest number of people using limited resources. Security threats, gangs, mercenary groups add additional difficulty. Quite enjoyable. Plague stretched abilities to limit. Couldn't have asked for more in given situation. Also, enjoy helping people, of course. Would never have turned down the chance to save more. Helping the helpless, greater good. All that, too. Nice retirement after STG work complete."

"Not a bad way to look at it, doc. And, speaking of Omega, how's Daniel?"

"Well. Safe and secure. Neighborhood mostly quiet with plague gone. Left him the security mechs. Can't be too careful. Also, tired of mechs. Noisy. Never used them in STG."

"And what did you do in STG anyway?"

"Not simply research. Several recon missions. Covert, high-risk. Served under a young captain named Kirrahe."

"Kirrahe? I met him on Virmire."

"Read in report. Old human saying, small world, applies. Jury-rigged explosive. Always got job done with limited resources. Good Captain. Bit of a cloaca though," Mordin put his hand on his chin. I smirked. Funny, while in this context he's calling Kirrahe an asshole, they don't have a word for that, but they have one for a cloaca. So that's just how it translates. "Loved his speeches. Hold the line," Mordin imitated. "Personally prefer to get job done and go home. Probably just military bravado. Jargon, chest-pounding. No offense."

"None taken. So, what did you do on those recon missions? If you can talk about it, that is."

"Oh, yes, of course. Got off track. We studied Krogan Genophage. Took water, tissue samples from Krogan both on Tuchanka, and in Terminus systems. Reason: Krogan rebellions bloody, dangerous. Nearly as bad as Rachni attacks." Mordin glanced down. Like a Human would when broaching something uncomfortable. "All species evolve, adapt, mutate. If Genophage weakens, need to be prepared." Ah, I see where this is going. I don't agree, but I'm not surprised the STG would be tasked with this.

"Prepare to attack?"

"Only if no other option viable. Genophage reduced Krogan numbers. Species aggression unchecked. Population explosion would be disastrous. Simple recon, checking for mutation. Nothing to worry about." Hm, if he says so.

"And anything you can tell me about the Genophage that they don't teach us?"

"Considering N7 education? Little. You know it is not sterility plague. Can provide more specific details as to goal of Genophage."

"Not causing their population to decrease?" I raised a brow.

"Comparing to size of population before Rebellion. Adjusts fertility rates to compensate for high birth rate. Stabilizes to pre-industrial population growth levels. Before state would aid in keeping citizens alive."

"Doesn't seem like it compensates for their new death rate," Mordin responded with a sigh.

"No. Does not. Unfortunate."

"I'll admit some surprise that a Salarian finds that unfortunate. My experience tells me that Turians and Salarians both are well in agreement and not exactly remorseful."

"More… complex than that." Mordin than stood straight. "Apologies, Shepard, must run a few tests before arrival on Korlus."

"I'll leave you to it, doc." There's definitely more to it, but, I won't push. Not right now.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

Korlus. The Galaxy's junkyard. Yet somehow, still with a meager population. Even with a murder rate in the top five. And we were heading towards one of the many massive scrapyards. This one, in particular, run by the Blue Suns. The whole crew was gathered in the shuttle. I'm going to have to start leaving some behind. We might start taking up too much space, too much cover, for our own good. Could create some real spacing issues. Jack followed my order about armor, wearing some light ballistic padding on her torso and her limbs, and a helmet. The armor was clearly recently spray painted. All black.

The shuttle touched down on the outskirts, under the hull of a massive freighter in the process of being scrapped. It looked like little more than the skeleton of a ship. As soon as the doors opened, we poured out. No contacts yet. Doesn't mean we haven't been seen. Or detected. Once everyone was out, EDI took the ship away.

"There is only one measure of perfection! Kill or be killed," a woman on an intercom shouted.

"Someone likes the sound of their own voice," Garrus remarked.

"Bloody Jedore. Crazy bitch," Zaeed muttered.

"You know her?" I asked the grizzled old merc.

"Not pleasantly. If we get the chance, I'm putting a damned bullet in her head." We continued moving towards the Blue Suns base, all built into an old… dreadnaught? Maybe, I don't recognize the design. Garrus began chuckling.

"Hey, Shepard, don't suppose Tali's up there," the Turian pointed towards the sky. I looked up to see the Silhouette of a Quarian ship. The ring at the front and the central structure of the ship with a dozen or so compartments.

"Two recruits for the price of one. Sure wouldn't complain," I smirked. "Ah well, she'll be back aboard soon enough." We turned a corner, a pair of mercs enjoying a smoke break despite appearing to be on guard duty. Lookouts. Obviously, neither had helmets on. One had their back turned to us, the other facing. I put a bullet in the back of the head of one, while the other cried out, and turned to run, stumbling. As he got back up, a burst from Mordin's Tempest struck him center-mass. Most rounds impacted the shields, but another broke through. We heard him cry out and hit the ground, out of sight behind their little perch of scrap. We began to move up, closing in on him. He was panicking. Hyperventilating. I stepped over the body of his buddy. He was young. Doubt he's even hit twenty. Probably a local trying to get out of the slums. He was clutching his wound. Bullet went straight through his side. Clean. A flesh wound. He'll be fine.

"Shit! Shit! It won't stop bleeding! Fuck! I'm gonna… son of a bitch!" he exclaimed. Eyes wide as he looked up and saw us. I shook my head and lowered my weapon.

"Weapons down," I ordered through the comms. The merc wouldn't hear it, but all of us did.

"Just kill him now and be done with it," Jack remarked, uncaring.

"Kid's unarmed. I don't kill if I can help it."

"What would his buddy say to that?" Jack countered.

"Assumed hostilities from armed hostiles. Necessary military precaution, but we never execute the unarmed. Especially when they can still be useful," I argued. Jack didn't respond, so I returned my focus to the terrified kid.

"I knew it wasn't berserkers. Not at range. You're mercs. Or Alliance. I'm not… I'm not telling you anything!" His face was splattered with the blood of his buddy, the blood from his wound though? Miniscule. A relative papercut.

"Would medi-gel change your mind? I could just keep walking," I pulled out and shook a vial of the gel, taunting him. His eyes locked on it. Got him.

"I… I don't know anything. I just shoot the overflow from the labs. The-The old Krogan up there. Been cleaning house lately."

"What's he doing up there?"

"Jedore hired him to make her an army. But what he creates are-are insane. Jedore tells us to use them for live fire training. But I don't get paid enough to bleed out for fuck's sake!"

His comm unit went live.

"Outpost four?" a man's voice spoke up. "Jedore wants us to move. We need coordinates on that Krogan pack. The kid was nervous.

"Get rid of them. Understand?"

"I-what?" he asked, not able to think straight.

"Tell your friends that everything here is fine and dandy. Maybe some sunflowers blooming, a double rainbow even."

"Outpost four? Respond!" the voice ordered.

"Uh? Sorry," the kid answered into his comms. "The last group… dispersed. Lost sight… lost sight five minutes ago."

"Dispersed? Jedore will be pissed," the man grumbled. "Jedore wanted a show.

"You asked for a report. And-and got it. Dispersed." The comms went silent. He looked back, pleadingly.

I started to hand him the medi-gel but held it back, I opened the canister and gave him two pinches of gel.

"W-what?! That's it?!"

"It's all you need, kid. I've seen paper cuts bigger than that little nick."

"Oh for-"

"Don't complain. We're letting you live."

"R-right," the kid muttered as he remembered just what kind of position he was in.

"Training is part of your contract!" the intercom blared. "Failure to comply means liquidation, both legal and otherwise!"

"Get outta here, kid." He started limping away as fast as he could. We kept moving. Passing the corpse of a Krogan that's been out here a while. Minor armor, torn to shreds by gunfire. Probably got into a blood rage and ignored otherwise lethal wounds.

"This line up with what you know of this, Jedore?" Garrus asked Zaeed.

"More or fucking less. Like I said, crazy bitch," he grumbled.

"Suspect clones. Facilities and equipment likely present, not viable for cure," Mordin mused.

"Probably. Even on Virmire, they were just cloning," I added. We passed more corpses, and eventually, came upon more unsuspecting mercs on a raised platform Garrus, Zaeed, and I took position, lined up our shots, and downed three of the four. Jack then ran forward, glowing blue, raising an arm, subsequently lifting the Suns into the air, and then slamming her fist down, not just slamming him down to the ground, but through the metal sheets they were standing on. She hadn't even broken a sweat.

"Let us know before, next time, alright? Good work, just communicate," I reminded Jack. She just grunted. Dead Krogan continued to litter the ground. All in varying states of decay.

"The Krogan are your example and your warning! As ferocious as they are, failures are expendable," the intercom blared again.

"Commander, I have intercepted the following message along local comms," EDI informed.

"Tell Jedore we have a problem. Teams are going dark, no reports. Either the Krogan are gathering, or we're being raided."

"Thanks for the heads up," I answered. "Hear that? They know something's up. We won't find such easy targets next. We heard gunfire. We moved up to find mercs in a firefight with another Krogan. Our only decent cover to join in required us to move inside and the mercs saw us before we could put them down. One of them pointed at us.

"Code six! Off world presence! Shift fire-"

Garrus put him down before I could, loading another clip.

"Hostiles in the compound!" another finished that merc's alert. A shotgun blast from that Krogan put down another, and I took down the final. Then, the Krogan put away its weapon. Turning to face us. He slowly approached. I couldn't see any expression, as he was wearing a helmet.

"You… are different. New. You don't smell like this world. Seven-night cycles and I have only felt the need to kill. But you… something makes me speak."

"Wait, seven days? Is he only seven days old?" Jacob exclaimed.

"They likely grew him to maturity in his tank. With some basic imprinting while in the tank to make him functional," Miranda shrugged.

"Wouldn't be much better than mercs if they still needed training," Zaeed remarked.

"Bred… to kill. No. I kill because my blood and bone tell me to. But it's not why I was flushed from glass mother." Must be what he calls the tank. "Survival is what I hear in my head. Against the enemy that threatens all my kind. But I failed even before waking. That is what the voice in the water said. That is why I wait here."

"Attempt to counter Genophage? How? Clones ineffective," Mordin began pacing.

"Counter? Counter was never whispered. Survive. Resist. Ignore," the Krogan answered. Strange.

"Can you show us to the laboratory? I need to speak to Okeer."

"The… glass mother. She is up. Past the broken parts. Behind many of you fleshy things. I will show you," the Krogan offered. It then turned and marched towards the wall under where the now dead mercs had their position. There was another large sheet of metal. We probably could have used the group's biotics to move it, but the Krogan lifted it up and tossed it aside with relative ease. "You fleshy things are slow when big things are in your way."

"Could move faster if you want to help us kill more of the fleshy things down there," I remarked.

"No. I feel it deep that I must wait. I kill, but only here. I am not perfect, but I have purpose. I must wait until called. Released." The Krogan then marched back to the center of the room and waited. Absolutely still.

"Alllright then…" Jacob murmured.

"It seems we have guests in the compound. All bonuses will be denied if they are not killed immediately!" Jedore growled over the intercom.

"I imagine it would help that goal if she told her people where we were," Garrus chuckled.

"Corridor's narrow. Spaced line, move up slowly. Biotics, watch for grenades and be ready to throw them back at a moment's notice. Got it?"

"I'll do more than that," Jack muttered." I took point, front and center. Zaeed and Jacob to my sides, Garrus behind me with Mordin and Jack. At the back, Miranda, and Jacob.

"They're loose! Run for your damn life! They're all free!" a merc's voice echoed. Footsteps. Mercs running fast. I raised and closed a fist, signaling for everyone to hold position. Jack at least would get the hint as we took a knee. Two mercs ran right into our line of fire. Taken completely by surprise upon seeing us. We mowed them down immediately.

"Watch for Krogan, might not be as friendly to us as the last one," I warned. We got back up and continued moving. A Krogan charged through from where the mercs had run from.

"You…" it breathed heavily, ready for a fight. "You… shall pass. I feel it deep. You shall pass." I relaxed my stance. "My brothers will not fight you. You shall pass."

"Keep your weapons ready, but move," I ordered over our comms. The Krogan still stared at us, but sure enough, the further we moved in, the more Krogan we saw, they too let us pass.

"Who authorized the Krogan release?" The intercom still had reach here. "Okeer? I will have order in my compound!"

"Krogan took down the grid! We're blind and getting hit on all sides! Where are the heavies?" A merc on the intercom shouted. Stupid, should keep it on the comms. Now we know too. We got to the ship itself that made up the compound, a staircase leading up to an old starship bulkhead. The bulkhead opened, and we continued moving up. The intercom came to life again. "Krogan on our six! Copy, god damn it! Where's Jedore and her personal guard?!"

"Overconfident while not willing to risk her own hide, that's where," Zaeed grumbled. "Stupid bitch doesn't understand her staying at the middle of it all won't matter for shit if the Krogan, or us, break through their lines. Thinking her men will be invincible if she offers enough credits."

We entered a make-shift med-bay full of Blue Suns' corpses. On the other side of the next door, Blue Suns, out of cover, shooting down at Krogan below. They were completely exposed to us, and we made full use of it. The biotics pushed or pulled some off or over the ledge, while the rest of us shot the few who remained. We continued to push, putting down any mercs who stood in our way. Some even forcing us to hold position. The heavies firing rockets at us, but low yield ones. Even the scrapped hull of the starship was able to absorb it. Likely a trade-off. Smaller rockets to carry more, they do less damage.

"Concentrate on the Krogan charge or we're all dead! Who was the genius who gave them arms?!" the merc commander from before shouted.

"I paid for competence! Kill the trespassers! I will deal with the traitorous Okeer!" The Krogan must be aware of us and organizing this charge for us to have a better time moving in. More Suns tried to stop us. More Suns failed.

"Shit!" Jack exclaimed, knocked down to the ground. Clutching her side.

"Wounded?" I called out.

"Armor took the damn hit. I'm fucking fine," Jack growled.

"Glad you followed my order about armor then, eh?" Jack took her anger out on the unfortunate merc who got a lucky hit. Finding himself slammed feet first into a metal wall with enough force to curl him up into a pretzel. He screamed in pain before she then slammed him head first into the same wall, killing him.

"Berserkers are going down, but the outsider commandos are still incoming! Repeat! Still incoming! I need everyone out of the labs to fight this! Every floor, every outpost! Move!" Despite the Commander's attempts, the Suns were still disorganized. They had spacing issues, which we readily abused. Biotic combos taking down groups, incinerate charges igniting others, it was a slaughter.

"No more! I demand that they be killed! What's so hard to understand about that?!" Jedore screamed.

"See what I mean? Bloody crazy stupid bitch," Zaeed exclaimed.

"What do you mean Jedore's holding the mechs?! She'll lose all her toys if we don't get goddamned backup!" the Commander on the intercom. We fought across a bridge, our marksman, Zaeed, and Garrus, taking care of the heavies firing rockets from the other side. Their lines crumbled, the mercs relying on the heavies to keep us pinned.

"Concentrate fire on my position!" this time, I wasn't hearing that through an intercom. I see. The one with Commander markings on his armor. "Concentrate on-" I fired an incinerate charge at him, engulfing him in flames. All the Blue Suns forces heard as their Commander screamed. As soon as we could push forward, I put him down. When we continued pushing, I noticed a few deserters. Turning to run the complete opposite way. It caused a chain reaction that caused more to run, and those who didn't notice, or who tried to stand and fight, most of whom were Turian, were put down without hesitation.

We were pushing along the highest level of the ship. It gave us plenty of ground to use and move along. In some spots, we were even able to get the high ground on other hostiles. Leaving their cover completely ineffective. Finally, they were put down, and we pushed forward. The door opened, and inside, was an Asari in a medical uniform. On one table, a dead Krogan. On another, a humanoid skeleton.

"Shepard! Don't shoot!" the Asari pleaded, hands in the air. "I shut down the security cams as soon as I saw it was you! Never thought I'd say it, but I'm glad it's you shooting up the place."

"Do I know you?" I raised a brow.

"Oh… Sorry. Rana Thanoptis. You… knocked me out on Virmire. Gave me the chance to escape. I-" My brows furrowed.

"And here you are, leaving more corpses."

"I'm not working for the mercs! I'm working for Okeer! He's trying to do something good, even if his methods are a little… extreme! Everyone deserves a second chance, right? I take care of my debts."

"Second chances, sure. Third chances? Unethical experiments look like. Like before." I raised my gun, and just like on Virmire, I smacked the butt of the Mattock against her head. "Jacob, cuff her. We have a brig?"

"We do. It's accessible from the cargo bay," he answered.

"Good. We'll stick her in there, and leave her with C-Sec or, some, authority when we're in Council space. Meantime, Mordin, I want you to secure her and follow behind us with her."

"Will keep prisoner safe, Shepard."

"Good. Everyone else, keep in mind. Got one less gun at our side now. Compensate." Mordin remained in cover as we moved to the next room. A large lab. A glass tank with a massive Krogan inside, and outside, on the other side of the tank, a Krogan in green armor.

"Here you are! I've watched your progress," the Krogan spoke without turning to face us, yet. The voice was rough, old. Okeer, obviously. I signaled for Mordin to move in. "It's about time," he turned his head while he continued his work on a console. "The batteries on these tanks will not wait while you play with these idiotic mercs.

"I can just take my men and leave, Okeer."

"You may claim to be here to help, but the formerly deceased Shepard is not a sign of gentle change." he backed away from the console and turned to face me, eying me down. Ignoring the others. Rana must have told him. "All Krogan should know you, even if they don't." He looked over, seeing Mordin with an unconscious Asari. "I'm sure Rana revisited your actions on Virmire."

"And I bet five credits you're about to as well," Garrus remarked. "I was there too. Is my name not remembered? Insulting." The Krogan huffed but continued.

"Such a tale," the Krogan began to pace. "The legendary Saren Arterius, a Spectre traitor. Threatens return of the Krogan horde by curing the Genophage… undoing the gentle genocide of the Turians and Salarians. But… before Saren could deliver his endless, cloned troops," Okeer stressed the word, implying he knew that it was merely cloning, not a cure. "In rides Shepard, securing victory through nuclear fire. I like that part," Okeer smirked. "It has weight."

"I may have kept what data they had on it, and… spread it. Problem was, the information was useless."

"Kept Genophage data?!" Mordin exclaimed.

"Only for when the Krogan were united peacefully. You hear of what Urdnot Wrex has been up to?" I reassured the Salarian.

"Regardless, I approve, Shepard," Okeer stated. "Saren's pale horde were not true Krogan. Numbers alone mean nothing. The mistake of an outsider. One that mercenaries have also made." Why does he think numbers mean nothing? Anyone could get overwhelmed by enough. Okeer turned to gaze over a large collection of breeding tanks outside. "I gave their leader my rejects for her army. But she grows impatient. It's time for you to take me out of here."

"And I hear tell you have intel on the Collectors. I'm mighty curious about that," I remarked.

"I see… yes. Collector attacks on Humans have increased. A human concern. My requests were focused elsewhere. I acquired the knowledge to create one pure soldier. With that, I will inflict upon the Genophage the greatest insult an enemy can suffer. To be ignored."

"And what about the others? You don't care about your rejects?" I asked.

"They are exactly what Jedore asked for. She simply lacks the ability to command. They are strong, healthy, and useless to me. I need perfection. If a few thousand are rejected, so be it. My work will purify the Krogan. We will not be restored, we will be renewed."

"And why not keep and prepare those who aren't perfect?" This guy… he's dangerous. I don't like him.

"Two reasons. A horde would evoke a nuclear response. The second, this soldier is a template. A greater threat than all the phantom siblings that would have been at its flank." That's a bold claim.

"What did you give the Collectors for your tech?"

"Many, many Krogan. Even fertile females. It is worth it. The Genophage does not produce strong Krogan. Only those with the ability to survive the Genophage. For every thousand stillborn, too many weaklings live. Each survivor is branded as precious. That's produced more coddling than your collective human teats." I raised a brow under my helmet. "I say, let us carry the Genophage! Let a thousand die in a clutch! We will defeat it by climbing atop our dead! That is the Krogan way!"

"Can't say I agree. At all, really. But that's not important now. You willing to help take down the Collectors?"

"Perhaps I can strike a deal to secure passage, but my prototype is not negotiable. It is the key to my legacy."

"Attention!" Jedore blared on the loudspeakers. "Okeer is a traitor. I'm calling blank slate on this project. Gas these commandos and start over from Okeer's data. Flush the tanks!" Jedore was outside, with some heavy armor, but no helmet at the moment. And, a YMIR mech. She was a brown-haired woman, and absolutely pissed. Vents in the room began leaking gas.

"She's that weak-willed? She'll kill my legacy with a damned valve!" Okeer exclaimed. "Shepard, if you want information on the Collectors, stop her. She will try to access contaminants in the storage bay. My Krogan will aid you. I will stay and… do what must be done."

"Got it. Mordin, follow us with Rana only to outside this chamber. Everyone else, move, put her down." We rushed towards the exit, the door still unlocked. We got to the storage bay, and already, several tanks were opening, releasing fully grown Krogan, imprinted to help us. Unfortunately, they were all unarmed. Even more, unfortunately, they were also all naked. I'll need to bleach my eyes when we're done here. At least the tank with Okeer's soldier was covered with metal supports right around the pelvis.

The Krogan made up for their state by just charging the YMIR mech, seeing the biggest and most dangerous looking target. One was mowed down, shredded to pieces. Another, blown up by the rocket, giblets of flesh flying every which way. But they closed in, slamming the YMIR into the ground.

"No! God fucking dammit!" Jedore shrieked. One of the Krogan ripped off the head of the YMIR, roaring.

"Shit, everyone get to cover, now!" Jacob exclaimed.

"What? Why?" I questioned, still following the suggestion.

"You know how LOKI's blow up when you shoot their head off? YMIR's have big fucking explosion."

I put my head down. Jedore was screaming and shooting still. The Krogan tearing into the YMIR.

"You ain't getting out of this one, bitch," Zaeed growled. He fired a pair of bursts, I assume shattering Jedore's shields, and then the _thwunk_ of a concussive round. No doubt knocking her away into the explosion. A beeping from the mech got faster and faster, then it exploded, heat washing past us followed by plenty of metal shards. I looked up to find tanks destroyed, and a big fucking hole in the floor. No sign of Jedore or Okeer's Krogan.

"Commander," EDI began. "The lab is experiencing a systems failure, and I have gained limited access. Okeer's life signs are failing, I am venting the room."

"Mordin, get in there!" I ordered. "Everyone, get on up!" By the time we arrived, Mordin was standing over the Krogan's body. Rana, still unconscious, against the wall. There was a message playing on the monitor of his console.

"Shepard, you gave me time. If I knew why the Collectors wanted humans, I would tell you. But everything is in my prototype. You will find," Okeer coughed, "armor for him, in a side panel of the pod. I have left it unlocked. My legacy is pure. This… one soldier, this grunt. Perfect…" the video recording and the voice showed he was weak. He collapsed, right to where, and how he is now. Dead."

"Well, shit," I muttered.

"Why would someone so psychotically fanatical sacrifice himself for one Krogan?"

"Maybe the Cheerleader has an answer," Jack remarked.

"I am-" Miranda began.

"Shut it, both of you," I stopped.

"Krogan, delusional. Unlikely one Krogan, however strong, could have impact Okeer wanted. Am… almost certain. Suggest leaving it."

"We didn't come here for nothing."

"True, but Krogan genetically dangerous. Socially dangerous as well. Have enough enemies with risking adding this," Mordin argued.

"We're all dangerous, Mordin. Besides, I remember what Wrex could do during the fight against Saren. A 'perfect Krogan,'" Garrus quoted, "Might be useful. If worse comes to worse, he doesn't have armor. We can put him down."

"Not to mention Okeer believed he could help us… look, we'll take the pod aboard, get the hell off this planet. Either we open it, or we throw it out an airlock." I shrugged.

"Normandy, get a shuttle down here with some heavy lift gear. Okeer's dead, but we got a package. Uh…" I glanced back at the tank. "On second thought, make that two shuttles."


	14. Birthday

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Bit of a shorter chapter, I know. You can call this me being cautious with this coming week. Scheduling issues, and the solution, with work last week left me with more free time than will likely be the norm. I wanted to make at least a decent chunk of next chapter still be on the ship before Horizon, and then... I'll say a portion of Horizon, rather than the whole mission as well. At least from my immediate guess. Point being, it should take less time to write if it's a bigger mix of freehand and just conversations than a whole mission of me trying to describe combat scenes and, everything that goes into a mission. Plus, didn't want to bore you in this one. So, I'll see just how much time I really have for this as I go through what I expect to be a more standard week. Anyways, hope you enjoy, and just so you know... That one-shot I've been comissioned on? Not done yet, but seven pages in I only just got to the real part of it. What the biggest part, and the one with the most highlights will be. And... there may or may not be a bit of something... else... following. So, keep looking forward to that. It's coming along.**

 **Commander John Shepard**

Once again, we gathered in the meeting room. Well, given that I didn't make attendance mandatory, Jack just took right off towards whatever nook she's found. Everyone else, on the other hand, was at least partially curious.

"So. You all know what we're here for. The decision's mine in the end, but I'll hear you all out. Speak your mind," I gestured.

"While it's valuable for research, I advise against opening the pod," Miranda stated. "A normal Krogan is dangerous. This one was created and educated by a madman."

"So were you, but you didn't take after him," Jacob remarked. She glared daggers at Jacob. Well, guess we know now she's not fond of whoever created her. And its more information than she wanted us to know.

"Must agree with Ms. Lawson. Krogan is unknown variable. All we know of Krogan is physical. What can be learned by looking inside pod, examining genetic data. Strong, hyper-acute senses, enhanced pain tolerance, enhanced regeneration. Perfect example of Krogan, despite curious presence of Genophage. Genetics show an enhanced potential for neural capabilities, still cannot guess at psychological state," Mordin explained.

"Guess there's not a high chance it'll wake up and imprint on someone like a little fucking ducking?" Zaeed joked. "No? Fuck it. Krogan are always looking for fights. Offer it the big goddamn fight we're gearing up for, doubt he can resist."

"On one hand I see the risks, on the other, I remember the benefits. Let's say it does go wrong, and he's in a permanent state of blood rage," Garrus began. "I say, a few of us go down there. Armed, armored. Probably smart to take a biotic as well. Hold him in place, fling him back, whatever's necessary. A few rounds to the head and he'll go down like anything else." I nodded along. Solid plan.

"Objections?"

"Again, I must caution. We don't know anything about it, Commander," Miranda warned.

"I know. I can't be the only one who finds it all the more interesting. Anyone else?"

"Nothing not already said," Mordin answered.

"Then I'm opening it. Zaeed, Garrus, Miranda, with me. EDI, order everyone on the engineering deck to vacate to deck three, then send the elevator up for us once they're off," I ordered.

"At once, Shepard," the AI answered. Likely simultaneously giving the order to engineering. Fortunately, we were still armored after Korlus, so simply retrieved our weapons again from the armory, and by that time, the elevator had arrived to bring us to deck four. It arrived, and we disembarked.

"Move it up to deck two and seal the deck," I ordered. EDI confirmed the order, and we entered the cargo bay that the Krogan was being kept in. Miranda stayed by the door, glowing blue with a Phalanx pistol raised, while Garrus and Zaeed got their rifles out, aiming for the head already. I got my own pistol out and raised my Omni-tool to open the pod.

"Commander, I must warn that Cerberus protocol is very clear regarding untested alien technology." Hm, figure its part of her programming blocks forcing her to reference protocol when I so obviously don't give a damn.

"Yes, because Cerberus protocol is oh, so dear to me. I'm opening it, TIM can kiss my ass if he throws a fit about it." Miranda sighed, likely rolling her eyes. I linked my Omni-tool to the pod and began the release process.

Fortunately, it was rather straightforward. The fluid in the pod began to drain, the Krogan starting to slump slowly as he was no longer being kept suspended. The reinforced glass of the pod opened, and the naked, and, fucking hell, massive Krogan, fell to the ground, on his hands and knees, he was conscious now. His eyes opened wide as he spat out a large amount of the same fluid that was in the tank. He then slowly got to his feet, towering. Big. Fucking. Krogan. He surveyed the room, but his eyes locked onto me. Deep, light blue. His stance showed he was ready to charge at a moment, but the weapons gave him pause.

He growled.

Wait a second… I don't suppose he had a translator implanted?

The Krogan ducked, and charged, taking us all by surprise. He surged forward to knock Garrus' and Zaeed's weapons away, not to mention the two themselves, and another surge towards Miranda. I fired a shot, striking him in the side as I expected me to be the next target. While the biotics slowed down the Krogan significantly, it was too late, and he knocked her away too, thus releasing the biotic's hold on him. The others were getting to their feet, but now, I was the target. The Krogan, still bleeding from his wound, sent his entire body crashing towards me, charging me up and against the wall, almost knocking the wind out of me. Strange, I'd expect it would have. Good, I still feel my grip around my pistol. Wait, why am I not dead yet? He had his arm under my chin, against my neck, applying pressure, but still enough for me to talk and breathe.

"Human. Male," the Krogan began casually. Ok, so he can speak the Krogan language, and my translator translates that at least. "Before you die, I need a name."

"I wouldn't, if I were you," Garrus warned, holding his rifle to the Krogan.

"I'm not the kind of guy you want to threaten. Especially not on my ship. I'm Commander John Shepard, and if you want to survive the next five minutes, relax." Let's hope he understands.

"Not your name, mine," ok, good, he can. "I am trained. I know things, but the tank… Okeer couldn't implant connection. His words are hollow." Ok, good, so he's not a fanatic like Okeer. He began muttering. "Warlord, legacy, Grunt… Grunt was among the last. It has no meaning. It'll do. I am Grunt. If you are worthy of command, prove your strength and try to destroy me. Do better than last time."

"Just like that?"

"I feel nothing for Okeer's clan or his enemies. I will do what I am bred to do. Fight and determine the strongest. But his imprint has failed. Without a reason that's mine, one fight is as good as any other. Might as well start with you."

"Looking for a fight, eh? I have a knack for finding those. I have a good ship, and a strong crew that's only getting stronger."

"If you're weak, and choose weak enemies, I'll have to kill you," Grunt applied a bit more pressure.

"Our enemies threaten the entire Galaxy, so they're worthy no doubt. As for me…" I lifted my pistol just a little bit higher. It had been aimed at his throat all the while, but now, I poked it. He huffed, in questioning surprise, and glanced down, seeing the pistol. He smirked.

"Offer one hand, but arm the other. Wise, Shepard. If I find a clan if I find what I… want. I will be honored to eventually pit them against you." Grunt stated as he released me and backed off. Still standing there… naked.

"Thanks… I think."

"Can we get this bastard dressed now? Just looking at that prick of his makes me feel… fucking inadequate," Zaeed exclaimed.

"Okeer said there's a compartment in the side of your tank with armor. Once you've got that on, you'll be free to roam the ship more or less as you please. You'll find food on deck three, bathrooms too. You can claim this as your own room if you want.

"It is where I began. It will do."

"Fair enough. We can see about getting a large bed down here for you. One standing order for you. I will not accept any fights between my crew. If you want to spar, that's one thing. But that's it, got it?"

"Fine," the Krogan grumbled.

"Good. Now, I do have one question. How are you able to understand us?"

"In the tank, Okeer taught me the languages of your species. To understand them. More than just their words. I will only speak the Krogan tongue, but I will have no need for a translator.

"Hm, smart of him, I'll admit," I murmured. "We'll leave you to get situated." Grunt huffed and moved to his pod. While we left. Bare Krogan ass, among other things, is not something I want to see. It may be too late to not see it, but not too late to keep myself from seeing any more.

"I'm going to report to the Illusive Man. I suspect he'll be pleased to know that Okeer was not a total loss," Miranda stated.

"And I'm going to make sure that Krogan didn't damage my rifle.

"So, Zaeed, why don't you and I chat then?" I suggested.

"Sure. Over to my quarters. It's a long one, we can share a drink for it," Zaeed offered.

"Sounds good to me." I followed the grizzled old merc. Inside, he had himself a cot, a workbench with a very old rifle laid on it, and what I can only assume to be a few trophies. Such as a large Krogan helmet marked with the Blood Pack symbol, and the model of a Turian cruiser, named. He even had a few throwing knives. Some laying on a crate, some embedded in the wall. He opened a mini-fridge he had and pulled out two beer bottles. One, he tossed to me, and I caught it. He crashed onto one of the supply crates, immediately opened his, downed about half of his beer right away.

"Right, everything you need to know, and you've asked about? S'all connected. Including that arrangement I made with Cerberus that I am going to need you to fulfill before we go through that relay. I know you didn't make it, but business is business. First, the tat on my neck. The Blue Suns symbol. Take it what you know of em is the same as anyone else? Solem Dal'Serah and all that?"

"Yeah, notorious slaver who founded them."

"It's a fucking lie. Over twenty years ago, just after Shanxi, me and my old time pal," Zaeed growled the word. "Vido fucking Santiago. We saw a galaxy full of fucking opportunity and all that shit out there. We founded the Suns. Solem was where it changed."

"How was that all kept under wraps?" I questioned.

"Cause Vido's always been fucking paranoid. And the record keeper. All the numbers and shit, logistics. I did the recruiting, the shooting. He always insisted we kept things a bit quiet in the first place. Use the contacts we already had for contracts. I didn't like it, but the credits were still enough to keep me happy. Sometimes contacts would tell a few others about us. Eventually, we got to the point where he was willing to expand. But the cost? Hmph, fuck that."

"What was it?"

"He wanted to start taking on Batarians. En masse. Go public, but with Solem as the face. The number of Batarians we took in before, I could count on one fucking hand. Like Tarak. I only let em on because I knew em. They weren't slavers, they weren't terrorists. All of them were descended from people who fled Khar'Shan. Who didn't like the Hegemony. I know I'm no goddamn saint, but I fucking hate those four-eyed scumbags. I only go out of my way to hurt someone if I'm being paid, or they shoot me. Even then I have limits. Kids, pregnant women, that shit. As for slavery, Humanity has already been through that shit show. It's like a fucking phase societies go through. Humans get a phase either of being edgy fucks or some weird shit that they spend the rest of their goddamn lives cringing at. The awkward teenage phase of a society is fucking slavery. You're always supposed to grow out of it, but the Batarians never fucking did," Zaeed went off.

"Not a comparison I expected to hear, but… also not one I can really think of an argument against. Anyways, what happened?"

"Right, sorry. Like I said, they really fucking piss me off. So, that's all the shit I told him. Want to take on Batarians, he said. Goddamn terrorists, I said. Just a few fucking days later, I get fucking bagged from behind, and knocked the fuck out in our own fucking base, by people I trained. I wake up, hands tied behind my back, out in the middle of fucking nowhere. Surrounded by Vido and other fucking traitors. Jedore was one of em. He goes on a fucking rant, monologue, whatever the hell you want to call it. Like a bad action movie villain. Out with the old, in with the fucking new. At the end of it all, he shoots me. Right in the fucking head. Hmph, bastard always was a crappy shot. Missed my brain somehow, blinded my eye though, bet you already figured that out."

"Still, not an easy shot to survive," I mused.

"You're one to talk. I like to think of it as surviving by pure fucking anger. I woke up, got myself treated, and got the hell off world. Had to start over with almost a blank fucking slate. Didn't want the bastard to learn I was alive so soon. I fell into the same old practices. Merc work, bounty hunting. Eventually, I got my reputation back. Built it up. Last twenty fucking years, I've been hunting him down."

"I get the sense this is where the arrangement comes in."

"Fucking right it does. Got a contract on Zorya. Eldfell-Ashland, one of their fuel refineries. Blue Suns took a more direct control of the workers than usual. Basically, got em working as slaves. Least until they pay a ransom. Didn't check if it was more or less than the bounty they paid me, might just not want to give in to em. Seems Vido was confident enough to do this one directly. After all, the Suns are very fucking secure on Zorya. Company got a hint about who was leading them. Contract dropped his fucking name. No way in hell I can gut that bastard on my own. I need help, you're it."

"Well, that's a contract I'm happy to help with and sounds like the galaxy will be a better place without him." I began.

"Damn fucking right it will," Zaeed growled.

"So, I'll help you out, but I want to get all of our recruits first. This is, in all likelihood, a suicide mission after all. I get the feeling they'll be a few last requests and loose ends to tie."

"Look, I care about two things. That it's done before the relay, and Vido's head on a pike. Or platter. I'll settle on a bullet to his brain. But a man can have preferences."

"Commander," Miranda's voice appeared on the intercom. "The Illusive Man wants to speak with you. It's urgent, and regarding the Collectors."

"Well, doesn't sound like one I can ignore," I murmured. "I'll be right up," I answered. I made my way up to CIC, and right towards the comm room. The table was already lowered, and it scanned me to prepare the video feed. He was, once again, sitting in his chair, leg crossed over his other leg, and smoking a cigarette. I raised a brow for him to tell me exactly what he dragged me up here for.

"Shepard, the Collectors are making a move." He breathed out a puff of smoke. "I've had teams watching the relays, particularly those linked to Omega. We tailed it to the Shadow Sea cluster, then lost contact with the ship. We don't know where its destination is, but there are several Human colonies in that cluster. We still have contact with them all, so they haven't been hit yet, and I have people watching every linked cluster."

"Hm. EDI, set course," I ordered. While I was in this vid call, EDI would obviously still hear me. "The Shadow Sea? Last I was around, that was close to the border of the Traverse."

"And it's only gotten closer. The system's populated enough officially to be considered part of the Traverse itself. Either the Collectors are getting bold, or they need worlds with larger populations. Both are equally bad signs," TIM added.

"We are a few days out, we might not be able to make it in time," I warned.

"You're not wrong, but relatively recently, not long after Freedom's Progress, the Collectors hit the colony of Ferris Fields. And that gave us some useful information. Before, I made the mistake of dismissing a lone merchant's claim of seeing a Collector ship in the same system of the colony days before the attack. After all, we still had contact with the colony. But, like Horizon, there are several other colonies within that cluster. I believe the Collectors surveyed each colony and chose their target. You might just make it," TIM took another drag of his cigarette. "And before you go, the Krogan. It was indeed your choice and I'm glad to see it is, at least so far, going well. But, if worse comes to worse and you have to put him down, try to keep the body intact. He's at least partially based on Collector tech. His genetics could prove useful."

Honestly, why even bother answering. He knows my answer. So, I simply cut the comms. Mordin needs to be aware. So, his lab was my next destination. When I arrived, he was peering into a microscope, tools in his hands, faint movements.

"Shepard, alive, healthy. Assume Krogan was reasonable?"

"Reasonable enough. Zaeed was right. Just wanted a worthy fight. Anyways, got a minute?" Mordin looked up from his microscope and set his tools down.

"Yes, would like that, actually. Talked about work earlier." Oh, well, now he's going to go off on this. Fortunately, I still want to hear it. Not sure I'd have an easy time to stop him anyway. "Time with Special Tasks Group. Studying Genophage." Mordin turned to the window behind him, scratching the back of his neck. "Wasn't entirely honest. Lie of omission. Also other kinds. Need to clear the air. Mission too important to keep secrets." He leaned down, resting on the bottom of the window, gazing out into the black of FTL. "Work on Genophage was more than just study."

"You seemed pretty reluctant to talk much about it last time. Can't say I'm surprised by this. What kind of work?" I asked. Mordin turned. I realized something curious. There was hesitation to his words.

"Study at first, as I said. But uncovered surprising data. Krogan population increasing at faster rate than expected. Krogan were adapting to Genophage. Overcoming disease. Faster than expected." He approached his table again. Hands behind his back.

"And I get the sense that you stopped that?"

"Yes. Personally led science team. Geneticists, chemists, sociologists, mathematicians. Created new version. Released on Tuchanka, other Krogan centric areas. Stabilized Krogan population."

"Gotta say, Mordin. I can't agree. Starting to wonder why the Salarians don't just go all the way. Seems like they're just getting to a slow death," I remarked, shaking my head.

"Not a war criminal, not a murderer," Mordin stood straighter. "Genocide unnecessary. Krogan as a whole, violent. Aggressive. Still, have outliers. Worth saving. Genophage modification protects galaxy, allows Krogan chance to survive. Everyone wins! Good for us, good for them!" he argued. He was… passionate. Convinced. Doesn't want the death of the Krogan, doesn't want to endanger the galaxy.

"And has the Union ever considered some alternative to the Genophage?"

"Hundreds. Thousands," Mordin began pacing at the table. "Modified Genophage best outcome. Stabilized population, avoided publicity that could incite Krogan anger. Averted potential genocide or devastating war. Best solution for whole galaxy, Krogan included.

"Not even some way that means if a female gets pregnant, the child, or, at least children, that get conceived are born alive, rather than stillborn? It's devastating and traumatic enough when a woman births a single dead child. But the amount, and the frequency for the Krogan? Geez…" I murmured.

"Much… much more difficult to do than sounds…" Mordin whispered, looking down.

"Have you heard much of Urdnot Wrex? What he's been doing on Tuchanka?"

"STG keeps close eye on Clan activities. To best of capabilities. Reports of his activities in past, then most recent. Read a few. Curiosity. Understand claim of united peaceful Krogan. Forward. Progressive. STG, suspicious, cautious. Naturally must be. If claims true, STG rates likelihood of success as low. Likely end through violent usurper or destruction by clan enemy. In last report I read, Urdnot having some success, both diplomatic success and martial success. Curiously, Urdnot spares all females, young, non-combatants. Kill few others who surrender, Krogan culture demands. Others die in crossfire, unavoidable in warfare. Unfortunate nonetheless."

"Good things to hear. Almost all of it. Now, you know I know Wrex, I vouch for him, whatever that's worth to you. Now, when he unites the clans under that banner of peace, how will you respond?"

"Unsure if it will be within my lifetime. Regardless, see hypothetical question. Response will be to suggest gradual treatment of Genophage. Not cure, not right away, but artificially induce same results natural mutations had been causing. Closely monitor Krogan and Krogan behavior. Chance to prove selves. Either cure or overcome once proven. Whichever of two comes first." At least there's that.

"I'll admit to understanding the reluctance given the rebellions, though I still disagree with the Genophage being the best course. At least for so long. And I respect that you'd be willing to give them another chance if they put in the effort."

"What is human saying? Agree to disagree?" Mordin mused.

"Feels… a bit wrong using that for a subject like the Genophage, but I don't have an alternative phrase." I remarked. "Oh, and, uh, by the way, I did come in here for a specific reason."

"Oh, of course, apologies," Mordin focused.

"Collectors are making a move and we're on our way to meet them for it. Should arrive in… EDI? How long until we arrive in the Shadow Sea?"

"Two days, Commander," EDI answered.

"Thanks. We need that countermeasure ready in two days. You might get extra time, but don't wager on it. I understand this may be a lot to ask, but-"

"Worry not, Shepard. Have made progress already. Will put all focus into research. First, create countermeasure for humans, then modify countermeasure to work on other species. Readjustments may range from complex to simple. Request that crewmember bring meals and water upon request until finished."

"Got it. We can give you whatever you need, except maybe time."

"Understand. Will start immediately. Don't mean to be rude, but, you must leave. Environment must be sterile."

"Leaving, leaving," I held my hands up. "Good luck, professor."


	15. Waiting Game

**Commander John Shepard**

We were closing in on the Shadow Sea. Should arrive this evening, but, there's still no guarantee we'll be on the move right away. There has yet to be any updates from TIM. I spent a good portion of yesterday… meditating. As weird as that still sounds. And feels. And I was making progress. Grunt was showing himself to the rest of the crew, and then devouring quadruple of what a human would eat in a single meal. And Jack was still a rare sight. Meanwhile, I was in the cockpit. Just starting a chat with Joker.

"What a motley little crew you've been picking up, Shepard. You collect stray cats as a kid?" he joked. "A mega Krogan, an insane and dangerous biotic who's definitely been on murder sprees, a possibly equally insane Salarian doctor?"

"It's definitely… interesting," I remarked. "What did you think of your little present of Omega?"

"Tore out the Krogan, Hanar, Elcor, and Volus pages right away. Might still be able to find the Krogan ones and hand them off to Grunt. Kinda hard to get anything going with the eye of god here always watching, though." I chuckled in response. "Any chance we can shut it off? I don't need it in my day-to-day."

"Best I can do is tell you to use the mute button," I shrugged. "But it's still watching. Like some creepy kid staring at the back of your head in comp sci. You want to punch him… but he's 'special' and sets fires or something," Joker groaned.

"That's specific."

"Look, you know what I mean. Anyways, here goes." Joker raised his hand over a button, and slammed it down. At least, as much of a slam a he can manage. The mute, obviously. "Ow," he murmured.

"Made your point?"

"Made my point."

"Well, I'm going to leave before you break something else. And before you get comfortable enough for the Fornax. Try not to be too loud, there are crewmembers just over there," I warned with a smirk. Joker just raised a middle finger behind him, leaving me chuckling. Hm, maybe I should go down to engineering. Check in on Kenn, see how he's getting on with Ken and Gabby, and I hear Jack found a little hidey hole in the sub-level just beneath the three of them. So, that's where I went. Got to the elevator, and made my way down to deck four. I went to engineering, and the three were working on their consoles.

"Gentlemen. Lady. I trust everything's going well down here?" I asked, also announcing my presence. Gabby and Ken turned and saluted. Gabby's salute different than Kenn's. Gabby's was, of course, the regular human salute, hand over the forehead. Kenn's was both arms crossed over his chest in an X form. "Hey, none of that. At ease, both of you." Ken was a bit slow at the process and hadn't yet saluted. "You three can all safely be informal."

"Thanks Shepard," Ken answered.

"So, everything fine and dandy down here?"

"Yes si- Shepard," Kenn spoke. "Green across the board."

"I already expected that. I meant the three of you," I smirked.

"Kenn's a great help. Even with the new couplings, Gabby and I would have still had a hefty workload. Splitting it across the three of us? I daresay our job's easy. Been getting to know each other. Kenn's a good lad," Ken stated.

"But we are of course still working as hard as ever," Gabby elbowed Ken. "We're just also being stuck with a bit more down time is all."

"So long as it doesn't make you lazy, down time is a great thing. Keep you rested, relaxed, time to de-stress," I remarked. "Kenn, what do you think of your time here so far?"

"Surprising, to say the least, Shepard. The… AI, still leaves me uneasy, but I rarely interact with it. And the crew has been surprisingly hospitable. Especially Gabby and Ken. But… What's with the… almost naked woman below deck?"

"Wait, wot?" Ken's eyes went wide, and I think he was about to stick his tongue out and wag it. "Oh, oh. Right. Jack. No longer excited," Ken whispered.

"Should have been here after she first found a home down there," Gabby remarked. "Asked him if he heard about the half-naked woman covered in tattoos. Got an even better reaction. Then I told him about the dangerous convict part, and he settled right down."

"Would have liked to see that. To answer you, Kenn, I don't know why she's so undressed, but she's a recruit. One I'm still trying to figure out. Good news is that she shouldn't bother you, just wants to be left alone down there. Speaking of, I was about to go down and talk to her."

"Do try to come back in one piece, aye?" Ken suggested.

"Will do." I left the engineers to their work and made my way down to the sub-level. Jack was reading a data pad on a cot she had brought down here. A few other data pads scattered across a table down here. The only thing covering her chest was those same leather straps she had on purgatory. She heard my footsteps and looked up, the hand holding a data pad now dangling.

"What?" she asked, casually. Not even threatening.

"Came down here to talk, and I like to know my crew. Don't know much of anything about you."

"If you want to fuck just say it. Answer's still no. Not in the mood. Not right now."

"Not interested, Jack. I've got my eyes on a different woman. One who's not on the ship. Not yet. So…" I gestured.

"Whatever," Jack murmured, hiding a very slight hint of surprise. And suspicion. "Well, if you're going to push, I'm still finding out about me. Thanks for forcing the cheerleader to let me look at these files."

"They're helping you?" I said. Jack nodded in reply. "Good."

"Don't be my buddy, Shepard," Jack glared. "You need me to kill for you. I need you for these files. Let's leave it there. Your friends at Cerberus are into some nasty things."

"Like I said before. Only reason I'm not hunting down every last member of that organization right now, is that I need them. They killed forty-eight of my men by luring us there right to a massive Thresher nest. They killed another through sick experiments, and I only learned one survived back when I was chasing down Saren. Injected them with Thresher Maw acid. Among other things. Not to mention a lot of other horrendous shit we found. What I want to know, to add to my list of grievances, is what did they do to you?" Jack sat up, leaned back.

"They raised me in a research facility. I escaped when I was a kid. Been on the run ever since." She stood and walked to the dim light at the back of the sub-level. "And they've been chasing me ever since. But soon… I'm going to chase them," she lifted up a pistol and stared at it.

"You think about it a lot, I take it?"

"I go to sleep with this," Jack began, obviously meaning the pistol. "I wake up with it. Everyone I kill, I pretend it's the ones that did this to me." Just what exactly did they do though? What research were they running on her? As a kid? She'd have said the first time I asked if she wanted to tell me. Shouldn't ask again. Not yet.

"You know if you want better quarters, you just have to ask," I offered.

"It's dark, quiet, hard to find. That means it's safe." she came out of the dim light and onto the table. She launched herself up on it, got on a knee, looking right at me.

"You know, this ship is a powerhouse. Could go pirate. Live like a king. I could help…" she offered. And with a look in her eyes.

"The offer's appreciated, but credits don't mean much to me."

"Then do it for the glory. The fun."

"First human Spectre has quite a bit of glory to it," I remarked. "And I even had fun last time around. Besides, if the Collectors keep going about their shit, we'll all be dead anyway. That piracy wouldn't matter."

"Fine, but when it's done, we'll either be dead, or out here, in space. With this ship." Jack got off the table. "Think about it. Freedom to go and do whatever you want, wherever you want, whenever you want. And all the mayhem and fighting I could want."

"Why is killing so important to you?" Jack frowned, taking that as me turning down the offer.

"I figure every time someone dies and it's not me, my chances of survival go up," she shrugged. "Simple." Hm, bit uncomfortable now. Exit strategy…

"I should go."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We're in the Shadow Sea, and not just that, but the Normandy has been waiting by the relay, watching and waiting, for any sign of the Collector ship. It's been two days so far. We hadn't gotten any word from TIM yet about a loss of contact, and we have confirmation that all colonies are still in contact. I'm starting to wonder if they judged the cluster wrong. At least we should still be close to wherever the Collector's hit. Currently, I was in Miranda's quarters. Making progress with my biotics. We spent the last fifteen minutes meditating, and I was able to… activate my biotics almost instantly. The aura was consistent.

"You learn quickly, Shepard. Now, let's manipulate an object," Miranda began. I opened my eyes, and she held out an antique coin. Picture it in my hand. Now that your mind has begun to form a connection with your biotic abilities, where you can bring it out with a single thought, it'll be easier to begin simple manipulations. If you think about lifting an object up, it will be easier for your mind to more quickly do just that with your biotics. And if you think about forcing an object down…" I nodded. "Now, close your eyes, and be careful to not move your body. Picture the coin," she continued, and I did just that. "Picture it in my hand, exactly where it was when you closed your eyes. No closer, no further." I focused.

"Good, the biotics are there, if unfocused. Excellent. Only skilled biotics can successfully, and efficiently manipulate objects without their sight. Now, open your eyes, and put all of your focus into the coin." I opened my eyes, breathing, staring at the coin. The blue aura that surrounded me surrounded Miranda's hand, and now, closed in around just the coin. "Now, shall you try to raise it? Decreasing its mass, or try to lower it, increasing its mass?" Let's raise it, try and make it float around. My brows furrowed as I stared at it, picturing it rising, and forcing myself not to move. "No, no. Don't strain yourself. That's a bad habit to form. You must be able to do this while relaxed. If you can do it relaxed, you can do it tense, if you can do it tense, you can do it stressed. But if you start doing it stressed, you won't be able to do it unless you're stressed," Miranda cautioned.

I took another deep breath. The coin began to shake in her hand. I kept picturing it rising, again, and again. Slowly, the coin began to float into the air. My mind immediately put The Force theme in my head. I couldn't help but chuckle, and the coin fell back into Miranda's palm. I felt, feel, like a Jedi.

"Very good, Commander. Like before, do some practice in your quarters. Here, you can keep the coin," Miranda offered.

"Thanks. I'm already eager to learn whatever party trick you have in store next."

"Please, Commander, I must start you off on the basics. I can't-" she began. In spite of myself, I chuckled again.

"I was kidding. I meant party trick in the best of ways. It's the kind of thing I'm going to do in mundane ways all the time just to entertain myself."

"Oh… of course. My apologies."

"No need to apologize. I'll just ask that you'll consider answering this question…" It had been on my mind a bit. "What was it about what Jacob said while we were debating waking up Grunt?"

"I suppose you deserve to know," Miranda sighed. "I assume you had it figured out he meant my father. He created me with all of my genetic modifications. He's a very influential man and extremely controlling. He didn't want a daughter. He wanted a dynasty."

"I think I have an idea where this is going, so I assume your last name isn't your original? Lawson isn't a name ringing any bells. Still, he could easily just be nameless megalomaniac behind some mega corporation or other," I remarked.

"You're correct on the former. Respectfully, I'd rather not drop the true name. I don't like being associated with it. So much that I ran away as soon as I was old and brave enough. I went to Cerberus because I knew they could protect me."

"Protect you?"

"My father invested a great deal in his dynasty," Miranda said the word with disgust. "It wasn't a matter of just leaving. I knew he would continue to pursue his… investments."

"Are those his own words?" Miranda, for a second, glanced down.

"Yes."

"You probably already figured this, but, some real shitty parenting there," I muttered. "Anyways, I imagine Cerberus was only too happy to do so with your abilities?"

"Of course. Cerberus endorses anything that advances the cause of humanity. Genetic alterations included. But unlike my father and his own selfish reasons, Cerberus and the Illusive Man believe in a greater good." Bullshit, but I'm starting to see the heart of Miranda's conviction to them. In her mind, I suspect anything is a saint compared to her father. "It's ironic, and even a bit humorous. My father believed deeply in a human-positive agenda. He was a generous benefactor to Cerberus for years. Until I joined them. And it was only through my father that I heard of them in the first place."

"Was there a mother involved?"

"I… never had one. Most of my genetic material is based on my father's tissue. His Y chromosome was altered with an amalgam of desired traits from various sources." She sighed again and leaned back against the wall. "How arrogant can you be? The man is completely egomaniacal. Just another reason I had to get away from him."

You know… her father and TIM sound like twins. And yet, one she reveres, the other, despises. There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Miranda answered. Chakwas stepped in.

"Shepard, would you come to my office for a moment?" She gave me a look hinting it was urgent. I had a few ideas. I nodded.

"Excuse me, Miranda." I left with Chakwas, straight towards the med-bay. Grunt was in the mess, shoving food in his face, and Jack had apparently just come up to snag some food and bring it right back to her… room. "Did she respond?"

"Yes. Apparently, her ship has been out of comm range for some time. Her answer to your question… was in a heartbeat." I took a deep breath. Time to make a call.

"Is she ready for a call?"

"I asked that she remain ready for a call soon."

"Well, no time to waste then… I swear, if the Collectors choose now to attack," I grumbled. I immediately went towards the elevators, and my quarters. Once I arrived, I sat right down at my computer, and linked my Omni-tool. I typed down her number, and just as I was about to call, I hesitated. It was a vid-call. It would only make the raw emotion that much more powerful. But… it needs to happen. I pressed the button, and I waited. It took some time, but as I nervously watched the dots of the waiting call move, they came to an end, and the feed changed.

"This is Captain Hannah She-" She froze. Eyes wide, gazing all over my own features. Her hair was starting to grey, but was the same cleanly cut length. "J-John?"

"Hi mom," I answered awkwardly, scratching the back of my neck.

"How… What? Who are…?" she started breaking, tears starting to stream. "You've been alive all this time?!" she cried out.

"Not exactly…"

"Not exactly?! I've mourned my only son for two fucking years! How does one 'not exactly' be alive for two fucking years?!" Yeah… the stages of grief. Can't blame her for this response.

"Because I was dead. Over the last two years my body was apparently being found, and rebuilt."

"How…" mother paused again, struggling with herself, with… this.

"I don't really know how. I just know who. And why."

"W-Well?" she asked. The door to her quarters opened.

"Ma'am. There's a-"

"Out! Get out! Whatever it is, I'll deal with it later!" mom exclaimed. The door immediately shut, and mom returned her focus to me. "Explain. Everything."

"Well… the who, believe it or not… Cerberus."

"The same organization you were on the verge of crusading against?" Mom asked, surprised.

"Yeah. Weird decision on their part. When I found out, I nearly killed the one who told me. As for why, remember the Reapers?"

"Of course, Anderson and Hackett have done what they can to keep them on the forefront, so have I, but they're only two voices, and I'm only a Captain. Is it something to do with them?"

"Everything, more like. Only thing Cerberus and I agree on is that they're a threat and need to be stopped. That's why they spent so much time and money bringing me back. Cerberus apparently thinks quite a lot of me. They offered credits, a ship, intel, and dossiers for recruits. And they have no illusions about me taking orders from those scumbags. As for the Reapers, have you heard about the missing colonies?"

"I have… troubling."

"It's the Collectors. I've seen proof. I've been putting a team together to eventually go through the Omega 4. That's… why I didn't call sooner."

"I… I see." Mom looked down, sadly. "I take it Karin is with you then. It explains the message…"

"She is. She accepted Cerberus' offer only because of me. So did Joker. I've already stumbled upon Garrus and Tali. Only thing keeping me sane with these bastards."

"It's… good you have friends around. I'm sorry. This is just, a lot."

"How couldn't it be? It's still a lot for me too." The intercom came to life.

"Commander, The Illusive Man is making contact. It's listed as urgent," Miranda informed.

"Shit, that's the cue we've been waiting for," I murmured. "Look, mom, I'm sorry but I have to go. Can you… do me a favor, and tell David? Maybe pass it along to Hackett too? I'll be making my way to the Citadel soon after this mission to talk to the Council. I want Hackett to be there too."

"I'll send the message right away. Whatever's going on, John, good luck. And… you don't know how glad I am to have you back," she managed to smile.

"It's good to be back."


	16. Horizon

**Commander John Shepard**

Horizon. That's the colony that just went silent. And, no way in hell is it a coincidence, but Kaidan is stationed there. Allegedly, some form of outreach program to protect the colonies and improve relations. Fortunately, Mordin's completed the countermeasure, and we're en route to Horizon. Despite my worries about spacing on Korlus, I'd be taking the full squad. In part, however, because I was going to divide us, just slightly. While waiting, I eyed up Grunt's armor. Silver, thick. Very thick plating. A few blue lights built in around. He also had a Claymore shotgun that Okeer left for him. Powerful. Illegal. It would break the arm of any Human who tried to shoot it. Likely the same result on little but a Krogan. As for the countermeasure, Mordin explained. The Seeker drones use both pheromones and sight. When a victim has been immobilized, the responsible drone also sprays the victim with a pheromone to mark them as such. They attack anything without the pheromone, allowing them to even go after those who try to play dead. Coating us in that pheromone should confuse detection. In theory, he added. The Doctor was still trying to develop an antidote to their toxin.

Shortly, we were in orbit around the planet. The Collector ship had parked itself on the ground, surprisingly, almost next to one of the colonies. I'd bet that's where Kaidan is. And, going there is likely the best way to stop the planet wide abduction. So, we took a shuttle, and began making our way down.

"Mordin, I want you following behind us. Your job will be to collect any and all samples that we leave behind. Miranda and Jacob will escort and cover you, just in case they get an interest in you. The rest of us are going to push in and find some way to stop all this. Understood?" Heads nodded. "And remember, this is the first time any of us have met Collectors in the field. We don't know how they fight, we don't know what they're capable of. So, be careful. Communicate."

"So long as these are worthy foes," Grunt grumbled. Soon, the shuttle stopped, and the door opened. We were on the outskirts of the colony, and the Collector ship loomed overhead. Like a massive tower. It was obviously mostly metal, but parts of it had massive chunks of rock. Particularly by the top, what I would assume to be the bow. And it was doing… something to the sky. Like a storm, or hurricane, was forming over it. The eye right over the ship. There was a crack of thunder, and a flash of lightning within the gathering storm. The unnatural looking storm. The clouds were a darker brown than grey. What were they doing... "Move forward." There was a black blot a few dozen meters ahead, I stopped to try and discern what it was. It was moving, and getting closer. A seeker swarm, must be. Well… let's hope Mordin was right. We kept moving, my heart beating faster as the buzzing of the swarm got louder and louder.

The swarm enveloped us.

"Fucking shit," Jack exclaimed.

"Don't move! Whatever you do, don't move!" I ordered. Couldn't see a damn thing, but… I didn't feel any bites either. Before I knew it, the swarm was gone, the buzzing completely passing us by.

"Never doing that again," Garrus murmured.

"Countermeasure a success. Glad to see we survived," Mordin remarked. We kept moving. The colony seemed to be surrounded by walls, ranging from low to high, with gun emplacements. Maybe if we get those back online… We came to what seemed like a loading field, a supply truck half stocked, and crates left along the ground, haphazardly. But no sign of colonists. There was more buzzing, but this time, we all saw winged humanoid figures swoop in, touchdown on the other side.

"Cover, now!" I shouted. One of the Collectors raised their weapon, and a beam of energy shot out, instantly streaming from the gun, to the crate I just dove behind. Targeting me, great. Some kind of particle beam. High tech. I could hear it burning through the crate, slowly but surely. I was still pinned. The others were still dealing with their own problems. Gunfire, both ours, and theirs. Seems they still have some use for projectile weapons.

"They're using barriers! Watch for biotic attacks!" Miranda warned. Great, they're biotic too. I swear if I'm about to get plucked up into the air…

"Jack, Miranda, Jacob, warp those fuckers! Take those barriers down, give us a chance to fire before this son of a bitch melts through my cover!" I ordered. Damn, how long can they fire that damn thing? Our biotics glowed blue, and I saw their shields flare from fire for just a moment. The Collectors fight smart. I heard the beam stop, and then a shot from Garrus' rifle.

"He's down, Shepard," the Turian called out. Finally, with an opportunity, I looked up. Two Collectors down so far, four remaining, but the swarms haven't come back for us yet. Maybe they won't? With our number advantage growing, I took the opportunity to move up and into more cover. That crate was getting paper thin. The biotics kept doing their work, and the Collectors fell.

"Change of plans. Zaeed, you'll take Jacob's place with Mordin. If we'll be attracting the most attention, I'll want biotics for those barriers." True, a few bullets will put a barrier down just as good as a warp or other biotic attack, it helps immensely.

"Fine, but next time I want in on the real action," Zaeed grumbled.

"You got it. Everyone, else, on me. Move out," I ordered. As we were moving, the comms came to life. Mostly, static life. It was Joker.

"Comman…-tting all kinds… -ference. Can't maint-"

"We read you, Joker," I answered. Hopefully he'd hear enough of the response to understand. "Mic check on short range. Everyone, check in." Solid copies across the board. We can still communicate with one another, if not the ship. "We'll see if we stumble upon anything to clear up the signal. Miranda, you do what you can on your end to try and clear it up. I wouldn't bet on much, but no harm in trying."

"Wilco, Commander," she answered. We kept moving deeper into the colony, coming upon the first group of buildings. A pair of Collectors were moving a pod. Seemingly unaware of us.

"Put em down, quickly," I demanded. We hurried forward into decent cover as Jack and Jacob glowed blue, tossing balls of biotic power right at the Collectors. They turned to face us, and were impacted right away. Their barriers fizzled, and a Krogan was roaring, charging right at them. A slug from his claymore punched a hole the size of my foot in the torso of one while Grunt smacked the other to the ground with the butt of his rifle and stomped on its head, flattening it. "Grunt! Be careful! There may be more-" More Collectors took that as their cue to fly over the wall and join us in this little plaza. Five of them. Jack and Jacob glowed blue again. The Collectors apparently didn't like shooting while flying, a good sign for us. Another slug from Grunt's claymore killed one as the biotics took down some barriers, but Jack used the one she hit as a projectile, picking him up and launching him right into another Collector that just landed. The barrier wouldn't do shit against that, and both bodies slammed into the wall, leaving a significant dent.

"The hell are those things?" Grunt snarled, looking to his left, where the Collectors were bringing that pod. Garrus and I just finished off the last two with our own shots. There was a shriek, and Grunt fired off his claymore again. We moved to join his fight, and for some reason, he had yet to get back in cover. Wait, why is nothing shooting at him? And… that shriek sounds familiar. My eyes went wide as I saw the source. Two were already lying on the ground. Three more charging Grunt. Husks. Well, this confirms it. They're working for the Reapers.

"Just aim for the head," I ordered quietly. Quickly, the husks were all dead. The Collectors too.

"Anyone want to explain what the fuck those things are? Why do they look Human?" Jack questioned.

"Was it one of the Colonists?" Grunt asked, though his tone suggested it was only mild curiosity.

"We haven't seen any Dragon's teeth yet," Garrus mused. "Doesn't mean there aren't any further in, but…"

"Seriously, what the fuck are you two talking about?"

"Garrus and I saw plenty of these things when we were going after Saren and the Geth. They'd impale people on giant spikes, Dragon's Teeth, and they'd become… these things. I might add that Cerberus ran a few experiments with them. Turned a lot of the Colonists on Chasca into these… abominations. It's Reaper tech."

"That's fucked up," Jack remarked, still seeming to not care that much. "But what are those Reaper shits you mentioned?"

"Are they a worthy foe?" Grunt questioned.

"I'll explain to you both on the ship. Let's keep moving." I got on the comms. "Miranda, we have husks, but no sign of Dragon's Teeth yet."

"Requesting confirmation. Did you say Husks?"

"I did. Keep your eyes and ears open for them. You'll see some dead ones as you follow."

"Solid copy."

"Also, you'll find a Collector pod as you follow. Find a way to open it and move the Colonist inside somewhere safe. I'm adding that as a standing order for any pods you find."

"Understood, Commander. Brute force to open or a different method?"

"So long as you can get them open quickly while keeping the Colonist safe, I don't care how you do it."

"We'll move forward now then. Mordin can collect more samples while I take a look at the pod."

"Sounds good. Keep in touch." I signaled for us to keep moving. Just as we turned the corner to another section of pre-fabs, there were even more pods lined up in rows. Along the wall, and the floor. Good thing I just gave Miranda that order.

"Well, this is… unsettling," Garrus murmured. Just as we were about to move further in, there was gunfire, and we fell back for cover. One of them had a beam weapon, by the sounds of it.

"Don't let that beam hit you! I wouldn't bet on our shields protecting from that," I warned. "Garrus, Jacob, move into the building. Make that Collector your prime target. Rest of you, wait for my mark." Garrus and Jacob were already moving. That beam was still focused on us, pinning us down. And the Collectors were starting to move in.

"Got a bead on him. I'll down him the moment Jacob warps," Garrus informed on the comms. Two seconds later, a shot rang out, and the beam ceased, a smoking hole in the ground.

"Mark!" Grunt and Jack again charged forward, targeting the two remaining Collectors without hesitation. Our charge, and the loss of their particle beam took them by surprise, allowing the two of them to get right close and personal. Not like there was a large amount of ground to cover anyway. Jack let her biotics do the work for her, but Grunt grabbed his by the arms, and ripped them right off, roaring, before ramming his forehead right into the large four eyed bug, caving its skull in. "Hey, careful, try not to rush in if you don't have to. It can get you dragged right into an ambush."

"We had the advantage," Grunt grumbled.

"We did, but like you did earlier on the last pair. What if those Husks hadn't been husks, but fully armed Collector troops? You'd have been full of holes by the time we would be able to assist. We move methodically. As a team, got it? Caution," I reminded. Grunt huffed. "Do you understand, Grunt?" I glared, a show of force might garner a better response from him. He huffed again, but the… tone, was different.

"Understood."

"Jack?"

"I get it, I get it. I understand," she answered, annoyed.

"Move out." We came to another set of pre-fabs, one of which was two story, and there were a pair of colonists, frozen. A man and a woman. The woman had fallen, and the man was in the process of helping her up. I got close, maybe we can- an eye darted towards me. "Fucking Christ," I jumped back. "They're still conscious. Can you hear me? Move your eyes up and down if yes." I looked down at the woman. She did as requested. "Good. We're going to move you inside. We're here to put a stop to this, and I have some allies lagging behind me. Once they open the pods along their way, they'll see if they can do anything more for you." The woman moved her eyes up and down again. I looked up the stairs to see another man in the process of running, just at the edge of the stairs. I gently pried apart their hands. "Jacob, take the woman." I moved to sling the man over my shoulder, but a lot of his body was still stiff and unmoving. "Garrus, can you move him for me? Help him fit better?" Garrus wordlessly moved behind me and pulled his arms down, and helped curve his back, leaving the man's face just behind the curve in my back. "Now, if you can help him, we'll leave them in the upper building." Garrus nodded, and moved ahead of Jacob and I. Just outside the door to the building was yet another victim.

Inside was a double bed, and a large sofa. As well as two more pods. Jacob and I laid the man and woman flat on their backs on the bed, while the other two colonists were lain on the couch. I got onto the comms.

"Miranda, got some Colonists not in pods yet. We moved them and set them down inside the upper level of a pre-fab. See if Mordin can do anything for them."

"Understood, Shepard. I just learned how these stasis pods work. We'll move the colonist and keep moving."

"Got it, and, oh, make sure you pick up one of those particle beams those Collectors used. I want Mordin to take a look at it on the ship."

"Interested to research Collector technology, Commander," Mordin answered. We kept moving, there were empty pods lain out in the field, and still some Colonists yet to be moved.

"Looks like they were in the process of working here, but now they're gone? Suspect an ambush. The pods look thick enough to use as cover. But only use empty ones," I warned. "Don't move anyone. Assume the area is not clear." Slowly, moving from cover to cover, we pushed forward. Once we were about halfway from where we were, to the perimeter wall, a squad of Collectors flew up and over. They, and us, immediately began opening fire. But then something strange happened. One started to glow, staggering as if in pain. The glows started to brighten, its body appeared as if it was getting covered in cracks of light. It then floated, stretching its body before curling up into a ball and then returning to the same position as when it began floating. It was like a small explosion of light and energy, and it returned to the ground.

"The fuck?" Jack muttered. This Collector though, had eyes only for me, though shots from the other's bounced off its shields. It began its march, some of its allies beginning to fall. The glows were brighter for a moment.

"My attacks will tear you apart, Shepard," a calm, deep voice stated plainly. No emotion. Not even a tone. The glowing Collector then launched a glowing ball of energy. Straight towards me. I got down in cover, and it impacted the other side of the pod I was behind. There was a shockwave of energy, and I was knocked flat onto the ground. Well ain't that great. "I know you feel this."

"So fucking what if I do, shit head? You'll still feel the bullet I put in your brain!" I shouted back, returning to cover so my shields could recharge.

"Who are you talking to, Shepard?" Garrus asked over comms.

"Oh, great, you don't hear that shit, do you? The glowing one's talking to me. Said my name," I answered, grumbling.

"All I hear are… bug noises, Commander," Jacob stated as another of the other Collectors were put down.

"It's like he doesn't even see us. Getting a lot closer to boy scout," Jack called out.

"Take his shields down, I'll finish the bastard," I ordered. Jacob and Jack both threw a warp at the same time, the combination of unstable biotics reacted violently, and detonated. When the moment of biotic energy cleared, he was still standing, but clearly worse for wear. Scorched, all over. I stood and fired a short bust of shots right into his skull.

"Releasing control…" the voice echoed as the body just… disintegrated. The last Collector was put down.

"It said releasing control. Sounds like it's just a puppet master taking closer control of the strings. We'll see one of them again," I warned. "Focus him first unless there's a particle beam. Take the beam out, then focus him. Another squad of Collectors joined the fight, flying right over the wall, but one of them was already glowing.

"We are the Harbinger of your extinction," the voice boomed.

"Oh, for fucks sake," I muttered. Damn I really need to get my biotics combat ready soon. And to make matters worse, there was a Collector with a particle beam, and its targeted Jacob, forcing him in cover.

"Well, guess I'm working overtime," Jack chuckled excitedly. "Eat this, fuckers!" Jack glowed bright blue, and focused a ball of energy into her hands. It looked unstable. She cried out as she launched the ball in the center of the group of Collectors. She moved her hands apart, like she was tearing something open, and the ball of energy turned black, and the three Collectors closest, including the glowing one, began floating up and closer to the center. They tried to use their wings to fly away but were too close. The moment a single piece of one touched the central black orb, the entire Collector was sucked right into a space far smaller than it. The three shared the same fate as one another. Once the third and final was gone, Jack's biotics faded, and she breathed heavily.

"A singularity? Damn, not even Miranda can manage one of those in combat," Jacob exclaimed.

"Don't… Don't you dare forget it," Jack breathed.

"You alright?" I asked, as we put down the last two Collectors. Making do without a warp for the one with a beam.

"I'm fine, that one just takes a lot out of me. Just make sure Gardner has a fucking feast ready."

"I think we can arrange that. With the area clear, I got on comms."

"Miranda, just had contact with some kind of Commander taking… remote control of some of the Collectors. Makes em a lot stronger, but whoever this is has a hard on for me. You might not have to worry about him. Also, passing by a lot more colonists. Podded and not. Since we've got the attention on us, we're going to have to keep moving."

"Duly noted. We've yet to have any contacts ourselves and will keep moving as planned. Just say the word and we'll provide reinforcements."

"Good. Keep me posted." To the right was the only spot for us to go, a storehouse. Curiously, the haptic display on the door showed it was locked down. Fortunately, it was still an easy bypass. Weapons ready, the doors opened, and we moved inside, Garrus and I taking the front. Checking corners. No signs of anyone. Just hardware and storage containers. There was a large clang, a tool, probably a wrench, falling to the floor. We had company in here. Hiding from u. Everyone was looking around for the source, and I saw it. By the floor on the opposite end, behind a piece of machinery, a boot. It had twitched and made just enough movement to catch my eye.

"I see your foot. Come on out, we're friendlies." Almost comically, the man peeked half his head out from behind the machine. He was wearing a baseball hat like Joker, but was clearly older than the pilot. Likely by another twenty or thirty years at the least. He was dressed like a mechanic, his work clothes greasy, dirty, not in the best of shape. Don't want to ruin anything semi-decent after all. Slowly, he stepped out.

"You're… human! Least, some of you. W-what are you doing out here? You'll lead them right here!"

"I doubt they missed the door was locked. Once they packed up whoever was outside, the Collectors would have been breaking down those doors," I remarked.

"Wait, those things are Collectors? They ain't a myth or some shit? I thought it was just propaganda. Keep us in Alliance space!" He turned around to the wall, seemed like he was, for the most part, talking to himself. "No! They got Lilith! I-I saw her go down. Sten, too! They got damn near everybody!"

"I have people combing through the pods we passed by and hiding the colonists the best they can. Further, we're trying to stop the whole damn abduction. What's your name? What were you doing before the attack?"

"What? Oh. Oh, right. Name's uh… Name's Delan. I-I'm a mechanic. I came down to check on the m-main grid after we lost our comm signals. Then… Then I heard screaming." He began pacing, looking at the floor. "I looked outside, and there was… swarms of bugs. Everyone they touched froze. I… sealed the doors." I saw it. The look of guilt. He looked back up. "Damn it! I-I-It's the Alliance's fault!" He's projecting. Not able to cope with the guilt. "They stationed that Commander Alenko here and built those defense towers! It made us a target!"

"Collectors have been attacking random, remote Colonies for some time now. Anyways, why was Kai- Alenko stationed here?"

"What, you know em? Said he was just here to get those towers online. I think something else though. Spying, maybe."

"And the towers? What can you tell me about them?"

"High powered GARDIAN lasers. Supposed to keep ships from landing near the colony. Had to build a massive fucking underground generator just to give it enough juice, but we couldn't get the targeting systems online!"

"Hm, a GARDIAN defense system for a colony rather than a ship," Garrus mused. "May not be effective at long range, least depending on just how much power they have, but plenty effective at any range a colony would be concerned with, short of orbit. Not likely to miss, it's a laser not a bullet, bypasses shields, and don't have to worry about ammunition. Smart."

"And we could use them," I remarked.

"You'd need to calibrate the targeting system first. It's never worked right." I turned back to the Turian, smirking under my helmet.

"Just how much time did you spend calibrating the Mako's weapons?"

"Mmmm… enough," Garrus hummed, smirking under his own helmet by the sound of it.

"So, where can we calibrate them from?" I asked.

"The main transmitter. Exit through that door, through the pre-fabs on the right, it's right there. Hard to miss. The targeting controls are at its base."

"Thanks. I'll let my people know you're in here, might leave some survivors in here. They'll leave you be."

"Just… so long as the Collectors don't… charge for us."

"You'll be fine." We made to move. On one hand, guy is partially responsible for all those he locked out. On the other, everyone likes to think they'd do the right thing in a crisis scenario. But then it hits, and the terror can just envelope people. Either freeze them or lock them down to their most basic instinct. Survive. No regard to anyone else. I already know that I do the right thing in crisis scenarios, but I've also been trained for that. I've been raised military. It's not a cure-all, I did freeze when I saw that Thresher Maw on Edolus after all. And the others we saw always were a struggle for me to get through. But that's for a different kind of reason. We exited the storehouse, and the door shut right behind us. Ahead, some large storage crates and farming equipment. And some pre-fabs raising over the relatively small wall on our left. A small residential area, perhaps. Two stories. I signaled for Garrus to use the crates as his cover, take shots from a distance, while the rest of us did what we could with the wall and a low barrier beside it. About seven Husks poured down from the second story of one of the Pre-fabs, and some Collectors flew up and over. Joining a pair already here.

One of them, was changing. A pair of warps struck that Collector in its process, and it just completed its change before a shot from Garrus popped its head and left the body to dissolve.

"You merely delay the inevitable…" the faded before it even fully formed. As if in retaliation, a distant Collector fired its particle beam at Garrus, pinning him. And the Husks were getting closer.

"Grunt, don't let a single Husk on our side," I ordered.

"Got it," Grunt growled, staring at his new prey. A single slug from the Claymore tore through two of the Husks, and likely would have tore through more, had they been lined up. Jack glowed blue again, and targeted the Collector with the particle beam.

"Hey, Vakarian, see if you can make this shot," Jack called out. The Collector was plucked into the air, and then launched in our direction like a giant bullet, one that would be going just over our heads. A shot from Garrus' rifle rang out, and, curiously, I turned to see the results. Orange blood first rained down and the body slammed against the wall, flattening against it upside down, before sliding down the wall to a crumpled up form, partially curled upon itself on the ground. The upper part of its head missing.

"Daaaaaamn," Jacob remarked, surprised. I admit, so was I. We put down the last Collector, but before we could move forward, something new lumbered out from a pre-fab. It was large, and it's back was covered in bulbous blue sacks. And sticking out was the head of a husk. In its shoulder, another head.

"Oh, what the fuck?!" Jack exclaimed. The creature made some kind of wheezing noise, and stuck out its arm. It shot out a ball of energy that pulsed, sending out waves of energy. A shockwave? Grunt began to charge, but met the shockwave front and center while the rest of us scattered. It knocked him back, flying, crashing through the outer wall of the colony, tumbling into the field behind.

"Those sacs must be full of Eezo! Shoot it!" I ordered. "Stay spread out! If fires at you, run like hell! Garrus, test a headshot, see if it stays down." Garrus complied, and the… main head, went out in a puff of black blood and gore. The creature reeled back, but kept moving. It fired at me, so I ran to the side. "Try the other." Garrus fired another round into its shoulder, the second head being left as a hole, the bullet embedded somewhere within the creature. It staggered again, but then continued lumbering. Raising its arm. "Fucking hell," I murmured. "End it!" The lot of us opened fire on the creature, aiming for the main sac on its back. I'm not sure which shot pierced it, but it finally popped, and the heat from our bullets and likely the sudden release of pressure caused it to detonate. Leaving behind nothing but the lower half of the creature's legs. Now, how's our Krogan?

"Grunt! You alright?" I called out, moving to look through the hole he left. He was already climbing back through it.

"Is it dead?" he growled, blood rage appearing to set in.

"It's dead. Anything broken?"

"Maybe. Don't know, don't care. It'll heal."

"See what I mean about not charging?" Grunt just grumbled. I got on comms. "Miranda, got another update for you. Storehouse has a survivor. Not in stasis. Might have locked the door, but I'll have the code. Sending now. Second, got another new creature. Some sort of… mega-husk or some shit. Don't bother shooting the heads. It has sacs of Eezo on its back you can shoot from the front. Let's it use biotics. Fond of the shockwave. Shoot the sacs to kill it. And watch those shockwaves. Strong enough to send a charging Krogan flying back and crashing through a wall. Grunt's fine though."

"Is anything left of strange creature?" Mordin asked.

"Just the lower legs, and I'm not inclined to go through the effort of killing it in a way to leave a corpse. You can get eyes on one through the suit cam. And, one last thing. We got a way to attack the ship. The guns around here are large GARDIAN lasers. We're en-route to ready them."

"Understood. We've only just made it to the frozen colonists you found. Should we move ahead and join you?"

"Standby. I want to see what we're working with for the defense," I answered. No doubt once the Collectors have an idea what we're up to, we're going to have a lot of company. We moved through the pre-fabs and reached the large door between here and the main transmitter. I opened it, and saw a large, flat field with a platform in the center housing the transmitter. Thank god the field was also littered with crates and trucks to use as cover. Two trucks in the front left corner, lined up side by side, but facing opposite directions, one in the back right. Crates were everywhere, and pre-fabs on the left side. Get Garrus working on the transmitter in the middle, have the rest of us all spread out, covering every direction. The biotics, closer in and protected, let them each manage a third of the area. "Miranda, that's an affirmative on the regroup. Double time it. We'll hold position.

"Finally, some fucking action," Zaeed spoke before she could. They arrived shortly, a minor delay getting through the storehouse. I began giving orders. Where each of us would plant ourselves. Jack and Miranda would be facing the far side. But each would be situated closer to one of the back corners. They'd supplement the left and right sides as necessary. Jacob would be closer to the door we're entering the field from. And would also supplement the sides as needed. Mordin, would be near Jacob. Zaeed and Grunt will take the far side, closer to Jack and Miranda. I'd be stationed closer to the right side, and closer to the door. But, as I'm in Command, I can move per my own judgement. Even roam, if necessary "Area still hasn't been secured. Careful," I warned. Before we were even halfway to the transmitter, half a dozen husks swarmed out of a pre-fab and a pair of those creatures from before lumbered out from behind the transmitter controls.

"Grunt, Mordin! You got the Husks. Rest of you, put those big fuckers down!" Gun fire rang out as we fell back to the door we entered from. Mordin and Grunt focusing their fire on the Husks coming from the left. Thanks to the fact the Claymore was a slug-shooter, it was still effective enough at range. Zaeed, Garrus, and I took out our snipers, and aimed for the creatures. Three sniper shots together were enough to burst and ignite the Eezo sacs. Was it overkill? Maybe. Do I care? Not right now. We loaded fresh clips, and repeated the process on the other, still out of range of its shockwave. With the big threats down, we all helped put down the last of the Husks. We swept the area, ensuring it was secure, and got into positions. Zaeed put himself up on the bed of the truck in the back that still had some crates on it, while Jack took some one of the other crates in the same spot, so she could still throw her warps effectively. Grunt, being tasked more on the left side, simply moved some crates to give himself a small fortress with an angle on all sides. Smart. I helped Mordin move some crates by the front so he could watch the door and protect his rear. Jacob was happy enough with the trucks as his perch. Miranda used other crates near Grunt, and I'd take a small raised cargo platform on the right side as my perch. More heavy duty crates for cover, of course. And the excess, we placed around the console, to protect Garrus from enemy fire without trapping him within. Wait a second…

"Garrus, see if you can't get a signal to the Normandy. If EDI can get a connection, well, you're good, but you don't have quantum computing."

"I'll see what I can do." Garrus got to the console, and by the look of it, reset the tower. Giving it power, and activating it, the tower extending a bit. He adjusted it to our long range frequency. "This is Garrus to the Normandy. Does anyone read?"

"Garrus? Signal's weak, but we read you. Is Shepard alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine, Joker. We need EDI to connect to this transmitter, and to the defense towers. Bring them online and fix some calibration errors," I explained.

"I have connected. I am distributing more power to keep the transmission clear. This will not affect the guns. I am rectifying the calibration errors and shall be done in seconds. The guns are coming online, but bringing them to full power will take time. This is a hardware limitation that I cannot counter. I recommend defensive positions. I cannot mask the increased generator output."

"Everyone, weapons up and ready!" I ordered.

"They are closing," EDI informed. The first wave was at Jack's side. I counted eight fly in. Garrus had already toppled over one of his crates to use as cover for the gunfight, while Jacob and Miranda had adjusted position to aid, if from a distance. I readied my Mattock, and the Biotics flew. Three Collectors landed with their barriers already fizzled out, and two of those three were dead before they even hit the ground. The last, just as their feet touched the ground. The remaining Collectors sprinted to cover, one of whom, thanks to a slug from Grunt, and a shot to the head from Garrus went down before he could.

"Don't give em an inch!" I shouted.

We held them off. Fighting off several waves of Collectors, their Husks, and their Commander. Regardless of where they came from, we put them down. That being said, we did take a few hits. An inevitability when surrounded and with so many hostile weapons. Fortunately, all the wounded were reporting were flesh wounds. And EDI was almost finished.

"Commander, I am detecting a large contact inbound to your position from above," EDI warned. We all looked up for this new foe. "Anti-ship batteries firing." It would be harder to see as the GARDIAN towers beamed high powered lasers at the Collector ship, filling the sky with red beams of light. At least it completely bypassed the barriers, and they worked on burning through the hull. At least, until safety protocols ceased their fire to cool down.

"I see it, from the ship!" Garrus called out. I peered close, squinting my eyes before looking down my scope. It was some sort of floating quadruped… thing. Like a large insect, larger than the Collectors themselves. A central body with four eyes, and four legs. No sign of any propulsion systems. It then dove down, planting it's four legs at the far end of the clearing, making some sort of… screeching noise. A mouth opened, and inside appeared to be a collection of skulls. Like looking at the walls of the Catacombs in Paris. Each skull with glowing blue eyes. It screeched again, and began floating. We opened fire. I could see the flash of a barrier reflecting our bullets. As did our biotics, who needed no verbal order to start their own biotic attacks. The creature had yet to attack, but was moving. Right towards me. Of fucking course.

"Shit," I murmured. The glow of its eyes grew brighter and a stream of energy from the left and right shot out towards the ground, and then began arcing up towards me and my cover. I dove out of the way, seeing the ground scorched, small flames flickering, and my platform sliced by the beams, my cover completely cut open. Finally, the warps detonated off of one another. I was still trying to get out of range, but I saw the others open fire. And the rounds ping off the barrier.

"Barrier's still up!" Miranda shouted.

"Keep trying!" I ordered, my run coming to a temporary stop. This thing hauled ass. I took the rocket launcher from my back, but I didn't ready it. Instead, I unclipped my belt as well, which had my extra ammo, including rockets, still unarmed, attached to it. I held both the belt and launcher tight. There was another biotic detonation, and the creature readied to fire on me again, screeching. As soon as the eyes glowed, I ran like hell, straight towards Garrus. "Take them!" I dropped the launcher on his cover and tossed him my belt. "Over here, dick-cheese!" I ran towards the far end of the field. Alright, internally, thank Cerberus for making me faster. The creature made a chittering noise and followed. I saw the gunfire from the others. Bouncing off the barriers again! Damn i-

A bullet chipped off armor. They finally collapsed!

"Garrus! Now!" I heard the Turian fire and saw the rocket impact the creature right in the back. It staggered forward, screeching. Garrus loaded another and fired again. The creature's back legs failed it, it screeched again. Another. It screeched even louder, and, maybe in some form of self-destruct, enveloped itself in blue energy, and just turned to dust. Taking a breather, I looked up to the Collector ship. It stopped sending that beam into the sky, and the lasers were still pelting it. But I'm not sure just how much damage they were actually doing. I suppose they were doing enough, however. The Collector ship began to shift, and there was a heavy rumbling noise. Crackling. Then an explosion at its base as its engines came to life. There was a powerful burst of wind as it slowly began rising skyward. We didn't stop them, and who knows how many Colonists they got away with? But at least they didn't get everyone. But, shit, if those fuckers got Kaidan…

"No! No, no, no! Don't let them get away!" Delan ran out into the field, shouting, almost deliriously. He saw me, and ran for me. Desperate. "You have to do something!"

"I'm sorry, Delan. There's nothing we can do," I sighed. The Normandy doesn't stand a chance against that Behemoth. Not now. And there's no way for us to board and evac everyone from the ship either.

"Half the fucking Colony's in there! They took Egan and Sam, and… and Lilith. Do something!"

'If I could still save them now, I would. But I'm taking the fight to those fuckers. They're taking people alive for a reason. I promise, if I find them alive, I'll bring them all back."

"You damn well better," Delan murmured. I saw Grunt approaching, his helmet off and a large, toothy grin.

"Shepard!" he laughed. "That fight was great! Your foes are indeed worthy!"

"Shepard?" Delan raised a brow, slight recognition. "Wait, I know that name… Yeah, yeah. You're a big-shot Alliance hero."

A figure stepped out from one of the pre-fabs to the side. A human man, grinning.

"Commander Shepard of the Normandy. The First Human Spectre. Savior of the Citadel." I took my own helmet off as he approached and talked, grinning in return. "You're in the presence of a legend, Delan," he glanced at the mechanic. "And a ghost." I noticed Garrus come to my side, his own helmet off. The man glanced him, and nodded in greeting. The Turian returned it.

"Of all the people we lost, and you get left behind," Delan shook his head. "Figures…"

"Damn glad to see you safe, Kaidan."


	17. Suns Out

**Commander John Shepard**

Kaidan gave a meek smile after hearing my greeting, and I suppose, the voice to help confirm. But I could see it. This was about to be uncomfortable. Like it did with Garrus and Tali. Two years of mourning just can't go away like that.

"I thought you were dead, Commander. We all did." Ah, using my title, not Shepard. Might just be caution. Still, he reached out a hand. I accepted, clasping his arm and pulling him into a hug. I patted his back and released.

"You thought right. I ran into Tali soon after waking up, and uh, I may or may not have gotten slapped," I admitted awkwardly, and Garrus chuckled. "Garrus was already in a mess, and by the time we got him out of it, he was… used to it, and wanted some drinks. Point is, I know how hard it was on everyone."

"Wait, wait, wait, what? How does… what?"

"I'm not exactly sure on all the details myself, but I spent the last two years either having my body be searched for, or on an operating table. I also know that I've gotten quite a few cybernetics."

"Then why didn't you try to contact me after? Let me know you were alive?!" he exclaimed.

"I asked about you, all of you, right away. If I'm going after the Collectors I need people I can trust. All I knew about you was that you got promoted and were… somewhere. No means of contacting you. I was going to look for you, but I had some recruitments in Terminus that were time sensitive. Like Grunt here, Garrus, Mordin, the Salarian over there, and Jack, the bald woman. If the Collectors hadn't made a play, I'd be going to help Tali with a mission and pick her up, and, finally, go back to Citadel space. Hell, I only just let my own mother know. This mission's probably going to kill me again, Kaidan. I don't want to double that pain if I can help it." Kaidan sighed, and ran a hand over his face. He paused a moment.

"Who did it? Who… rebuilt you?"

"Yeah… there's the part I fucking hate. Chalk up another reason I need those I can trust around. Keep me fucking sane," I grumbled. "Fucking Cerberus." Kaidan threw a glance of suspicion.

"That's lining up with some rumors the Alliance has been hearing. Other intel we had said Cerberus might be behind the missing colonies. They got a tip this colony might be the next one to get hit."

"Well, you see who the-wait, did you say they got a tip?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"And were you sent here before or after the tip?"

"After. What's that got to do with anything?"

"Oh, that fucking son of a bitch," I growled. "A fucking week ago, The Illusive Man, the fucking prick, Cerberus' head fucking honcho, said he saw a Collector ship heading here. We've been waiting in this cluster for five days, and only when we heard a colony went dark did I learn you were here. That fucking son of a bitch set this up! He knows the Collectors have a hard-on for me, and my crew, so he used you as bait!"

"Why am I not even surprised anymore?" Garrus remarked.

"I'm not sure what to be more pissed about. Being bait, the losses to the colony, or that you're working for the head of Cerberus," Kaidan scoffed. Now it was my turn to sigh.

"Not for. Never, for. I've been nothing but a pain in their ass since I learned who woke me up. I was on the cusp of hightailing it back to the Alliance before they proved that whole colonies were disappearing. And, that the damn Reapers are behind it. Even then, I was still about to bail, but the Alliance is stretched thin. They offered a ship, a crew, credits, intel, and dossiers for a team to build. They already know I won't follow their orders, so they left that off the table," I explained.

"But you're still with them! Even after everything we saw!"

"Kaidan, they killed my entire fucking platoon save for one. And they tortured him, and another of the dead. No one in this fucking galaxy hates those motherfuckers more, save for Toombs, probably. And Jack comes close, if not a tie. But you just saw what Humanity is threatened by. And if the Reapers really are behind it all? Then the entire Galaxy is under threat. Right now, I have to be the bigger man, just for a little while."

"Even after using me as bait?"

"Oh, believe me, I am going to fucking chew TIM out for this. And I'm already working on converting the crew away, most of them know jack shit about what Cerberus has done. Garrus and I already told them everything we saw, some just need more than our words. Jacob there? Turned. Miranda, there is a helluva lot more loyal, but I'm getting to the root of her dedication. I might just be able to turn her too."

"Would Shepard ever do anything remotely like this unless it was for the right reasons?" Garrus asked. Kaidan sighed again and looked down.

"No, no he wouldn't. But maybe Cerberus is using the threat of the Reapers to manipulate you."

"They're trying. I have zero doubts about that. I'm certain that the crew was handpicked to paint a pretty picture of these scumbags for me. Everything TIM does or says I scrutinize and pick apart."

"And what if they're working with the Collectors?"

"That I wouldn't buy," Garrus spoke up. "If I look at this from the angle of a sociopath, it was a smart tactic to test and prove that the Collectors have it out for Shepard. And by extension, anyone associated with him. Don't get me wrong, the lives of those the Collectors took are all on Cerberus, and that's a very large price. But it just doesn't fit together if they were working with them. Besides, why would they have a target on us specifically if not for the Reapers?" This was getting to him. That much was clear.

"Kaidan, please. You don't have to decide on this now, but it would mean the world to have you back fighting by my side. I'm sure Joker and Chakwas would be happy to have you on board too."

"Them too, huh?" Kaidan sighed again, looked down in thought. "I need to report back to the Citadel. They can decide if they believe you or not."

"I'll be there by the end of the week." Kaidan nodded in reply.

"Goodbye, Shepard. Just… be careful." Good, he used my name.

"It was good to see you, Alenko," Garrus stated.

"You too, Vakarian." He slowly, and awkwardly, turned, towards the way he came. I took a deep breath and got on the comms.

"Joker, send the shuttle. Everyone else, finish what you're doing. We're heading out."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

I was impatiently tapping my foot as I waited for the table in the comm room to lower, then impatiently tapping it as I waited for the connection to establish. The bastard was, again, smoking. Hope it fucking kills him. Actually, scratch that. Nothing's taking my fucking kill.

"Good work, Shepard. Hopefully, the Collectors will think twice before attacking another colony."

"Don't suppose you'll think twice before using my friend as bait and sacrificing the lives of everyone they took?" He took another drag, clearly annoyed.

"I told you I wouldn't sit and wait while the Reapers and Collectors sit and gather strength. They would have hit another colony eventually. Even with my net, it would be difficult to predict which one. They would have abducted everyone. The way I see it, lives were saved, not sacrificed." Damn it. It's hard to argue, but I'm still adamant he's wrong.

"Don't you dare do it again."

"I have no reason to. Stopping one abduction, partially or entirely, won't matter in the end if it's not stopped at its source. I'm devoting all my resources to finding a way through the Omega-4. We have to hit them where they live. Moving on, I've finished the last few dossiers. An Asari Justicar. One of the strongest Biotics in the Galaxy. And an Assassin, Thane Krios. A marksman, and an expert in martial arts. As well as a biotic. Both of them are currently on Illium. And you still need to find Kasumi Goto."

"Fine. Anything else you have for me?"

"Just want to ensure that your team will be fully committed to this mission. Any distractions jeopardize your odds of survival."

"You brought me back because I'm a leader. I know how to handle that."

"Very well. Be careful, the Collectors will be watching you." The video feed faded, and the room lit back up to how it normally was. I made my way to the cockpit, Joker lounging for the moment.

"How long will it take us to reach these coordinates from here?" I asked, showing him.

"One sec," he answered, and typed away at his terminal, leading forward. "Wait, Geth space?" he asked, confused. "Uh, two days."

"Then we'll arrive more or less right on time. Get us there, double time it."

"Wait, why are we even going to Geth space?"

"It's for an old friend."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

Our ETA at Haestrom is scheduled for another hour. Everyone needs to be suited up fifteen minutes beforehand. Being a bit anxious myself, I was already ready. In addition, I owed some explanations to Grunt and Jack. Given Grunt's always in his armor anyway, and Jack doesn't take long to get ready. So, I gathered them up in the conference room.

"What's this all about, Shepard?" Jack asked, the same gruff manner as always.

"I said I'd explain the Reapers to you both on Horizon, didn't I?" Jack actually seemed a little surprised. "So, we do have an op soon so I'll make this fast. What do you two know about the Geth attack on the Citadel two years back?"

"Robots went and fucked a lot of people up," Jack shrugged.

"Okeer ensured I knew much of the battles in history. The Geth were led by a Turian, a Spectre, right?" Grunt added.

"That's the official story, yes. But it's a half-truth. The Geth had a dreadnaught with them, absolutely massive. Two kilometers, and took the entirety of the Fifth Fleet to put down. Even then, a lot of ships and a lot of lives were lost. That dreadnaught wasn't of Geth make. That was a Reaper. The true leader. Of both Saren and the Geth.

"How does a ship lead anything?" Jack questioned.

"How does our ship talk, Jack? The Reapers are ancient AI, and, by the sound of what Sovereign told me, a very large number of AI make up just one Reaper ship. As for how many Reaper ships there are, Sovereign told me that their numbers will darken the skies of every world. I'm inclined to believe that's not a massive exaggeration."

"And where the fuck are all of them?"

"Hey, let him finish. I wanna know more so I can rip them in half," Grunt grinned. A bit psychotically.

"Dark space. Outside the Galaxy. They are the ones who built the Relays and the Citadel. They are the reason the Protheans vanished. I've seen the messages in their beacons. It's all warnings. The Reapers have been doing this for millennia, and they call it the cycle. Wiping out all advanced organic life every fifty-thousand years. Give or take. The general plan of action is that Sovereign, the reaper they leave behind to keep an eye on things, sends a signal to the Citadel, and it opens as a massive Mass Relay, and the Reapers all pour through. Wipe out our leadership and the bulk of our fleets from the get-go. Take control of the relay network, and wipe us out as time goes on. At the end of the last cycle, a few Protheans sabotaged that plan and Sovereign had to directly take control. He got the Geth and indoctrinated Saren. The rest is history. Don't know why they do what they do, but, well, they do." I explained.

"...Well shit," Jack murmured. Grunt was just grinning more.

"When do I get to fight them?"

"I don't know, Grunt. I don't know. But they're making a play with the Collectors. I'm not sure what that play is, but, let's not allow them to succeed."

"Wait, what was that indoctrination you talked about?"

"Mind control, to keep it simple. You know I didn't actually kill Saren? He put a bullet in his own head. The most he could do to resist the indoctrination at the end of it all."

"Well… if I want to keep my odds of survival up," Jack began.

"You gotta help us stop them."

"Agh… fuck," Jack murmured. "I'm going to think for a bit. Don't get your panties in a twist, I'll be ready."

"Grunt?" I started as Jack left.

"Yes, Shepard?"

"I appreciate the enthusiasm, but, take them seriously. Just one took an entire fleet to put down, after all. Those Husks we saw were one thing. When they invade, whenever that is, it'll be something else entirely. Who knows what other monstrosities they'll make out of people." Grunt nodded. I let him go and anxiously waited.

I wanted to call her, but well, we're in FTL, that has no chance of working. And, of course, that could well give us away to the Geth. So, I just kept pacing down in the shuttle bay. Double, triple, and even quadruple checking my gear. Finally, the crew began to join me. Garrus, Miranda, Jacob, and Zaeed making up the first group. The elevator can only hold so much after all. Now it would be Grunt and Jack's turn. Mordin I allowed to sit out, as he still had plenty of samples from Horizon to study.

"Commander, I must ask. What are we doing out in Geth space?" Miranda began. At least she, as well as the others, were all suited up and armed. But Garrus was chuckling.

"I was wondering where you were. Of course, you'd already be ready and waiting long before us for this particular mission."

"I've got an idea. But I'll sit back and let it be confirmed. Or denied," Jacob shrugged.

"Geth space, eh? Never got to fight the fuckers two years back. Interested to see how those flashlight fucks fight," Zaeed remarked.

"You could say we're here for another recruitment, Miranda. An old friend of mine just so happens to be on Haestrom right now. We arranged to meet. I help with the mission, and they come aboard," I explained.

"Tali'Zorah, I assume? Very well, so long as they're reliable we have no reason to turn down help." The elevator opened again, Grunt and Jack exiting.

"Jack, Grunt, we're fighting Geth today. Also, expect friendlies on the field. Quarians."

"I'll try not to cough on one," Jack remarked, disinterested.

"These are Marines, Jack. Trained soldiers. And we're here to pick up an old friend of mine. Unlike the mercs and pirates you're used to, they know how to fight," I chastised. "Now, the Geth's strength has always been in their shields and weapons. Their armor isn't anything to scoff at, but they prioritize those shields. Biotics aren't ineffective, but today, techs are going to reign supreme.

Jack, I want you to actually hang back as support. Pick off the stragglers, slow down, do what you can to the bigger targets. Grunt, today is your exercise in patience. And Zaeed, listen up, this is your job too. You'll be near the front, but you're to wait and pick your targets from those who's shields we techs drop. The rest of us will be scattered as needed. We'll prioritize overload and sabotage programs. Pick your targets, but it's not critical that no one gets the same. If that happens, odds are you'll just fry the Geth's systems and we'll just have another dead bot. Other than that, just aim for the head. Their torsos are better protected and have less crucial systems. And a Geth can still function without its limbs. Take out the head, take out the processor. Just like blowing out a merc's brains." EDI then chimed in.

"We have exited FTL just outside of Haestrom's orbit. Initial scans are showing many orbiting Geth installations. It is difficult to tell if they have military capabilities, but it appears unlikely. In addition, scans of the planet and the system's star, Dholen. The planet's magnetosphere has been overwhelmed. Exposure to direct sunlight will also result in exposure to dangerous levels of radiation. You may experience technical problems, but your hard suits should protect you for short periods of time. I recommend remaining in the shade whenever possible."

"Understood." I then spoke louder carrying the order. "You heard EDI. Don't go in the sunlight unless you have to. No exceptions. Got it?"

"So long as there's no hiding," Grunt grumbled.

"I wouldn't count on it."


	18. Guns Out

**Commander John Shepard**

The Normandy, with the stealth systems engaged, would be keeping itself in low-orbit around Haestrom on the planet's current dark side. And our shuttle was closing in on the mission area. There were huge crater-like quarries dotting the landscape from Geth mining operations. Curiously, the remnants of Quarian civilization here appeared to be cities made of marble, carved into and out of the stone. It was no doubt some form of rock that wasn't marble, but from our bird's eye view, that's still what it looked like.

"EDI, send us pictures of Haestrom before the Geth rebellion," I requested. EDI obliged, and my Omni-tool was pinged with several images the AI had selected. Very unusual indeed. With the exception of the larger structures, the Quarians primarily built with the stone already here. Financially smart, of course, as they didn't pay to haul so many of the construction materials here, it's just still unusual for any space-faring people to build with stone rather than metal and alloy. I pulled up a file on Haestrom. Ah, that makes a bit more sense. Even back then, the sun pushed a few extremes on the environment, though that was mostly just temperature, not radiation. Not temperatures to lethal extremes, unless one would stay outside without hydration and shade for extended periods of time. But it led the Quarians to develop this world mostly, subterraneously. Building into cliff sides or sinkholes, whether natural or artificial, using the very stone they're digging out, and putting more of the used space underground. Only building on the planet's surface for off-world travel, colonial security, industry, mining, and research. Smart indeed. Everything so far would make one believe that Haestrom would have been the most secure locations for the Quarians during the war, but, unfortunately, Haestrom was primarily a research colony. First and foremost. Studying the sun. Anything here that wasn't dedicated to research was here to ensure the Colony was still self-sustaining.

The shuttle began to slow and descend, and I checked my weapons once again. All ready to go. Suits sealed and protected. The shuttle touched down, and the doors opened on a landing pad completely in the shade. Once we were all off, the shuttle took off again. Ahead, a ramp down that's mostly in the sunlight before a structure provided more. I glanced back at the others. Miranda reluctantly agreed that it would be wise to cover the Cerberus logo on her armor for this mission. Tali may be aware, but the others aren't. And Jacob, as he only still has his just so he can help ease Miranda away, he hopes, brokered no argument.

"Stay here. I'll see just how bad it gets," I ordered. I readied myself to sprint, and raced across to the next area with shade, then checked my equipment. Hm, my shields were re-cycling, so it does screw with our shields. Everything else, so far at least, is still all green. "It doesn't agree with our shields, but everything else is in the green. Just hurry around. Come on." The others hurried across, following me further down along the ramp to an old security checkpoint. It was fully sealed, but the guard post could still be accessed from our side. A barely recognizable Quarian sign almost completely faded away on the stone by the door. The VI in my helmet that translates written words couldn't even piece together what was left. The door had power, and I interfaced. The program was slow, glitchy. Time had not been kind to the systems, but my guess is that the Quarians did most of the hard work here for us. Not to mention it was all outdated to high hell. Still, I got the door open.

"Damn it," I muttered. Slumped against the wall was the corpse of a Quarian male. Geth fire had torn his suit to shreds, the rounds having burnt through his body. There were a pair of Geth combat platforms also collapsed on the ground, offline. I moved closer to inspect the body and instructed Garrus to get the large door open. The Omni-tool lit up.

"Life signs detected. Playing message:" the built-in VI spoke up. Then the voice of a male, obviously the one now dead on the floor, played through the tool.

"Emergency log of Migrant Fleet Marine Nilo'Vezh vas Ziji. The Geth are here. I've stayed behind to buy the others time. Anyone who gets this, find Tali'Zorah. She and that data are all that matters. Keelah se'lai." Data? Must be what they came here for. But what would it be of? I looked for and found the marine's comm device, but it was too damaged. I wouldn't be able to patch myself into their network unless we found an intact one. I marked the body's location so that any and all surviving marines after this mission can try and retrieve the body. And Garrus just got the larger door open. Everyone had their weapons ready, and we got moving. I took point. It seemed to be an old supply depot.

"Shepard! Dropship on our left," Garrus called out. The big, metal, limbless bug was flying our way. Jack and Garrus took cover on the sides of the large door, while the rest of us had to run forward, taking cover behind old stacks of what appeared to be concrete or large metal crates. Neither held my confidence, especially not against Geth weapons. We need hard, thick cover to really be safe when our enemies fire can melt right through.

I counted six forms drop from the ship to the ground, unfolding themselves to combat forms. Scouts, I'd say. Not expected to survive, just learn who the intruders are. Our tech attacks began immediately, overloading shields or frying their systems. Finishing them off with a few well-placed shots. Hm, funny. Gunfire seems to be taking them down easier than before. I guess the change to clips really did allow us to make our guns more powerful, but I still hate the fact we're essentially back to limited ammo.

There were two routes ahead for us to take. Straight down the middle, which had more shade, but less cover, or the high ground to our right, which, if crouched, there would be barriers that could still give us cover, had more sunlight. I'm not sure how well anyone up there could fight against other Geth also possibly up there. Still, we need… two people to go up top side. Hm, I peered out a little further along the middle. It seems that at the far side, the Quarians had dug down and made a killing field, holding the Geth off at least for a time. Whether they eventually retreated or fell, we'll find out soon.

"Garrus, Jack, topside. Rest of you, with me down the mid," I ordered. I watched to make sure the Turian and the biotic were secure up top, then Grunt and Zaeed followed me down first to mid. I took cover behind an old cargo transport, Grunt, a bit closer behind a part of the wall sticking out, good cover for him, and Zaeed along the other side of the cargo transport. MY side was closer to the mid, but Zaeed's gave him a good, angled sightline for any taking cover along the left walls. Fortunately, the sunlight was just barely unable to shine on us.

"I don't see anything from up here yet," Garrus informed. So, we moved up a bit further. Zaeed just took my spot, while Miranda and Jacob joined him. Garrus and Jack also moving up. We were just short of a small and open area. The only small pieces with shade had no cover from ahead whatsoever, and the places with that cover were completely open to the sun. "There they are. I count ten, holding position, in cover, just ahead of you. My guess is they'll wait to open fire until you're right in the middle."

"Open fire. Hopefully, any who take shots at you will become visible to us. Jack, watch for any who try and get close," I warned. A shot from a sniper rang out in response. And just like that, seven Geth heads popped up, weapons raised. Some at us, some at Garrus. The remaining two must be Jack's next target practice. This still wasn't the best firefight for us. The Geth had elevation. A shot from Zaeed's sniper was still able to blow the head off one, Miranda used her biotics to lift one up out of cover, leaving them easy pickings, and frying, Jacob did the same with another, and I just fired my Mattock. Three shots. The first weakened the shields, the second broke through, damaging the head, and the third finished it off. In such rapid succession, it might have been a burst or even an automatic. Damn, I love this thing. Glancing up, I saw two Geth frames float up, then get launched far out to the left, over our heads and over the ledge. The remaining Geth fell quickly, and we moved up, through the killing field the Marines left behind. Certainly a good defensive position, one they used well. Looks like a squad held here while others scouted or got a foothold up ahead through the alley on the right. There was only one Quarian body back here, another man, this one had taken a Geth round straight to the head. Nothing the medics could do. The body was just on its back, while the top part of both his head and helmet were gone, the rest, scorched. We pushed forward. There was gunfire. Both Geth and ballistic weaponry. So, we pushed ahead, faster. Three Geth bodies on the ground, but two others still standing as I saw two more Quarians dead on the ground ahead. We took the Geth out. Damn it, again.

"Break-break-break. OP-1 this is squad leader Kal'Reegar, do you copy?" One of the Quarian's faceplates had been shattered, so I could hear their comms. I rushed ahead to his body and linked my Omni-tool to his. Getting into their comms. I could hear gunfire, and his soldiers calling out amongst another firefight.

"Squad leader Kal'Reegar, this is Commander Shepard of the Normandy. We're here to help."

"I read you, Commander. Patch your radio to Channel 617 Theta." I got to the specific frequency right away and laid down the Quarian's arm.

"On the frequency," I answered.

"We were on a stealth mission," Reegar began. "High risk. We found what we were after but the Geth found us. They've got us pinned down. We can't get to our ship, and we can't transmit the data through the solar radiation."

"How many of you are there?"

"A dozen marines plus science team. The scientists can fight but aren't as well trained as we marines. If you called through OP-1s radio, best as I can tell, seven marines, including myself, are left. Science team took two casualties before they locked themselves down in a safe place. Not sure how many were wounded, or the extent of their wounds. We've made the synth bastards pay for all of it."

"Is Tali safe?" I questioned.

"Safe and sound, led the other scientists to bunker down. Guess you're those reinforcements she hinted at." She's safe, good. Good.

"I might be. How long have you been fighting the Geth off?"

"About an hour. Any bodies you found were from us falling back from initial surprise."

"What's your status and location?"

"Holding position. Sending a copy of our map of the area." I looked at my Omni-tool as the map lit up. Quarian numbers marking the grid. "My guess is you're here, at OP-1s position. Not far ahead is a storehouse we used as base camp defended by OP-2. OP-1 was just pulling back to them after they took a casualty. Find them, help them secure the area, and you'll just be a short way out from OP-3 and I here." both locations were marked on the map. "We're separated from Tali'Zorah and the scientists by this clearing here. The Geth dropped down and have us pinned with a Colossus. They're trying to cut through to them. Not sure why, Tali is the only one who's a threat out of the Scientists there," Kal explained. Damn, they must be after her because of her connection to me. "Fortunately, the door is thick and the walls thicker. Getting her out is our top priority. If you can extract her, we'll keep them off you."

"We're all getting out of here alive, Reegar. Just keep your heads down. We're on the move now."

"Under-wait! OP-2! Watch your ass! Dropship coming through!"

"Falling back inside," a female marine answered. The rest of the squad and I began rushing ahead, turning a pair of corners just in time to see the bunker door OP-2 was at close, and the dropship fire just where the squad likely placed themselves. A pillar to the side of it had its base melting from the bombardment, and it toppled over, blocking the entire entry-way.

"Shit," the female lead of OP-2 spoke into comms. "The entry-way is blocked. Commander Shepard, there are demo charges in the buildings nearby." Fortunately, a team equipped as we carry explosives of that capability. But what might be faster…

"No need, OP-2. We have charges ourselves, and biotics. We'll clear the area outside, move the blockage, and put it back in place to cover our backs."

"Understood, we'll hold and be ready to cover your entrance. And be careful, we saw the shimmer of a Geth hunter's cloaking just before the dropship came in."

"Solid copy. Thanks for the heads up." I got off the comms "Hear that? Got a Geth with cloaking. Look for a shimmer in the air. It's easy to spot, but easy to miss if you're not looking for it. Slow and steady here."

"I didn't think machines would be cowards," Grunt growled. We began moving forward. The regular troops were easy to spot and were taken down quickly before any of our shields broke.

"There's the hunter," Miranda called out, firing a burst right into a shimmering mass that had just begun to step out from cover. Its shields collapsed, and some shots hit its body, but it was still standing. Fortunately, its cloak died as it either diverted power, or we damaged it. Revealing the Geth to our team, and we took it down immediately. We rushed towards the bunker, which, looking around at the area, I believe it was closer to a storehouse than a bunker. Anyways, the non-biotics all took defensive positions around the pillar, covering the biotics as they got to work. I noticed Jacob was showing some strain, even Miranda. But Jack was simply focused. They all glowed blue as the stone was lifted just slightly above the ground and pulled towards them. I moved to the side of the entryway to watch for when it would be out far enough. When I was certain Grunt would be able to get through, I called out for them to stop. The stone was released and landed with a heavy thud.

"OP-2, we're coming through." The door opened, and the Three Quarians took positions to cover us as we got inside. The biotics were last, and we switched positions with the Marines so the biotics could close it back off. Secure, we ventured into the storehouse proper. Through an airlock, interestingly. This storehouse bore all the signs one would expect of a base camp. Cots, a make-shift med-bay, a table with chairs, tubes of nutrient paste and sterilized bottles of water on the table. A workbench with some Geth weapons or even parts of a Geth unit. The Marines holstered their weapons, so I did mine.

"Apologies, Commander, we just need a moment. Saato took some fire," the female lead began, gesturing at one of her troops. I noticed then that the one in question was clutching his shoulder and being sat down by the other, as he looked at his comrades wound. "Musi'Lumos vas Tema. I don't know what the hell you're doing out here, but I'm not about to complain about having the help of the man who stopped the Geth."

"Pleasure to meet you." The woman's suit was dark in color, and the cloth was a light brown. "We'll move when you're ready." I noticed looking at the others, their suit colors varied, Saato's being bluer in color, and Lef, whiter, but both had the same color cloak if different patterns.

"Thank you. In the meantime, this might be of use to you," the woman began, then moved towards the workbench. She picked up a strange looking Geth weapon, inspecting it, then picked up some power cells and handed it to me. "Geth Plasma shotgun. We don't have any charges for it, but I promise its better than whatever shotgun you're carrying. Consider it thanks for kicking their metal asses two years ago." I opened my mouth to argue. "I insist, Commander. We have plenty of samples of Geth weapons already."

"Tali'Zorah to base camp, come in base camp," a familiar voice cropped up over the camp's comm systems. From an old console here, no less. Displaying a fuzzy hologram of her upper body. Couldn't help but smile. Musi was already approaching the console, and I was right behind her, taking my helmet off.

"Tali'Zorah this is Musi'Lumos. Saato is wounded but Lef is tending to him. And, we have reinforcements." I poked my head around, and Musi stepped aside.

"Hey Tali," I smiled. I figure she could see my hologram now.

"Shepard, thank the Ancestors you're here."

"Hey, you know me. When I make a promise…"

"You keep it."

"Besides, I'm always happy to help out a damsel in distress," I remarked. Garrus barked a short laugh. Tali awkwardly chuckled.

"It's good to have you here too, Garrus."

"Good to be here. Unless, that is, not only are these Geth hunting you, but you're trapped in some sort of stasis bubble underground like Liara was. I've already had enough of Shepard's special little brand of… excavation for one lifetime." I just gave the Turian the finger. Musi seemed a little surprised by the banter.

"Seriously though. What's your situation? Last I heard from Kal, he and, by my count, three others were on the opposite side of a clearing from you, with Geth and a Colossus in the middle."

"Then nothing's changed. We're locked down, but we can hear the Geth trying to get in. They're trying to start breaking through, but Kal and his men are harassing them."

"Then we'll keep moving. I won't let them get their hands on you."

"I can take care of myself, Shepard," Tali chuckled. "I know. We'll be waiting. Just hurry, I'm not sure how much longer Kal and his men can hold." I nodded in response. The Quarian I assume to be named Lef, who was tending to Saato approached, speaking to Musi.

"I've done all I can for Saato here. The suit's patched and I've given him a healthy dose of antibiotics. He can fight, but not effectively. I recommend he stay by the rear."

"So long as he can move," Musi responded. "We're ready to move. Base-camp, out." The hologram of Tali faded. I put my helmet back on and I heard Zaeed on our squad's comms. Not the ones we share with the Quarians.

"Is the sun getting to me, or was that goddamn flirting?"

"You have no idea," Garrus laughed. I noticed Miranda was quiet as Jacob. Grunt and Jack? Well, I don't think they were even listening. I just didn't respond. We got moving through base camp's other exit, skirting the edge of the subterranean complexes beneath. Coming out again into a kind of cave. Maybe it was an old hangar. Our attention was quickly taken as two smaller shapes shot by through the air. Geth drones. Musi fired a pair of rounds and both drones went crashing to the ground.

"No doubt the others are cloaked now. Careful," she warned. As I got a better look at the room, hangar seemed like less of a likely purpose. I still wasn't sure what, however. There were three by three rows of large support pillars reaching to the ceiling. The sides easily a dozen feet in length at the least. We moved slowly. Using the pillars as cover, dashing across when it appeared to be clear. As I got to the final pillar in the first row, that was when I saw our hostiles. Two large Geth platforms, both of them bipedal.

"Primes!" I called out.

"Damn," Musi muttered under her breath. "Commander, quickly, the shotgun." I pulled both the shotgun and a charge pack. She opened a hatch on the side and quickly showed me how to insert the charge. Geth fire already pelting the side of the pillar to pin us, no doubt as the Primes are closing in. "When ready, hold the trigger to charge. Release to fire. Your men and mine will distract the primes. You sneak around, take one out from inside the shields with a charged shot. As the other prime turns to engage, your Krogan will charge in and take it down."

"Good plan." I began to move back to the second pillar, planning to go to the far side of the middle of the second row. Just in case one wants to flank.

"This'll be fun," Grunt likely grinned under his helmet. I had time, at least. Primes are big and tanky, absolutely, but they're slow. Carefully, I moved to the second row, around, and then to pillar now behind the primes. I peeked ahead. The primes were separating, one moving to the other side of the pillar to cut off escape.

"Grunt, take the one coming around your left," I ordered and began slowly creeping ahead. It was close, but I got inside the range of its shields and held my finger on the trigger of the shotgun. It hummed, the barrels starting to glow and burn with the superheated energy. The Geth prime began to turn, hearing the noise, so I shoved the barrel of the gun into its side and the exposed wires within, angling the weapon up and fired. The prime released a kind of shrieking noise and the lights began to burn out as I pulled the shotgun away. I moved to engage the other just in case, seeing it was just turning the corner parallel to where its friend was going. But it seems a Krogan was already waiting. Grunt grabbed the primes weapon and angled it to the floor before trying to wrestle it away. The Prime chittered, being able to hold its grip. Grunt growled, and launched his forehead into the Geth, denting it, but not disorienting it. Grunt's growls turned into snarls and he lifted his foot, placing it against the Geth, and pushed, that extra force being enough to tear its weapon away. The Krogan tossed it aside, then tackled the Prime, sending both to the floor. He dug his claws into the vulnerable wires in the gaps of armor at the lower torso, and just began tearing, the prime trying to force him off. While the primes could match Krogan for strength, it was still being straddled by one as it tore out core systems. The prime gave up, and its lights died. Grunt stood, and roared, turning it into a bellowing laugh.

"I. AM. KROGAN!" He then looked back down at everyone else. The Quarians a bit unsettled. "Where's the next fight?"

"Er, just ahead," Musi answered. We got to the far side of the room and through a door. It had three plated up windows and a door on the left. "Security lockdown is still engaged. Disabling it so we can join Reegar." She approached a set of consoles by the windows. The door opened, as did the windows. Revealing the Colossus charging a heavy shot. A subtle tilt of its head showed it was changing to new targets.

"Just like old times," Garrus muttered.

"Get down!" I cried out, jumping out of the way and to the floor, everyone did the same, scattering. I heard Saato grunt out in pain, his wound not agreeing with him. The pulse went through the window, and out through the door, we came.

"Stay down and move up," Musi ordered her men. Crouching, moving along through the door. There was plenty of gunfire. The Quarians still putting up a fight. We moved around and down. There was the body of a female Quarian, dead. What was left of her anyway, looks like she took a heavy shot head-on. Not sure I want to think about what forced her into whatever position left her vulnerable. All that was left was a male in a brighter red suit, and two other soldiers.

"Over here! Get to cover!" the man in the red suit called out and waved. I recognized the voice, Reegar. "Musi, Saato looks wounded. Can he fight?"

"Yes, but not at full capabilities."

"Understood. Commander Shepard, Squad leader Kal'Reegar, Migrant Fleet Marines." He began. The Geth were still firing, but we were keeping our heads down in cover, behind stone and metal and concrete. "You're looking at all that's left of my squad, Geth are still trying to get to Tali. Best I can do is draw their attention." Another heavy pulse rocked against our cover. Wonder how much more it can take before that all melts away too…

"Have they been able to make progress?"

"Negative. The observatory is reinforced. Even they'll need time to get through. Hard to hack or blow a door when someone's firing rockets at you," Kal remarked, and I think I caught the ghost of a smirk through the visor, barely able to see the silhouette of the man's face tug at the mouth. He hefted his launcher up, making a show of it, before standing to fire another one out. "Geth are near platoon strength, but the Colossus is the real problem. It's got a repair protocol. Huddles up and fixes itself. Armors too thick to do any real damage from this range before it starts. Damn thing is completely covered when it does anyway. We tried to move in closer, but one of the bastards punched a hole clean through my suit."

"How's the damage?"

"Sealed and I'm swimming in antibiotics. Geth might get me, but like hell am I dying from an infection in the middle of battle. Just the thought is insulting," he grumbled.

"And the field? What kind of approach angles do we have?"

"Three. Right sides got a catwalk with a sniper perch. I'd love to have someone up there, but we haven't had the chance to move there in the first place. Middle has the best cover, but it's right in the line of fire from the Colossus. Plus, Geth from both sides and in front of you. Left side, covered from the colossus, but your ass is hanging out for the Geth to target. That's how I got shot. Nela got hit covering me," Kal gestured to the corpse." Alright, near platoon strength, not at it. So, fourteen Geth, more or less. Plus the Colossus.

"I've killed Colossi before, but we always had a Mako on hand for those. What's the Fleet's on foot strategy?"

"Standard protocol with armature-class units is to sabotage the shields and whittle it down. Think you humans say, 'kill it with bug bites.' Repair protocol fucks that plan right up. Try to wear it down, huddles up and fixes itself. Best I can tell, we need to get close and put more fire on it than it can fix."

"Got it. Definitely sounds like a three-pronged attack is our best bet. Garrus and Zaeed are both snipers, I say we get them up there, with Jack, one of our biotics, to cover them both. My squad can go down the middle to draw the Colossus' fire, and the fire from the Geth. You'll be covered from hostiles on the left, we'll take down the mid. Garrus and Zaeed can cover you. We get close, tear it apart from its underbelly."

"Solid plan, Commander. Just one thing to add. I see you've got a launcher too. Fire a volley to force it into repairs first?"

"Good thinking. Ready," I answered, taking out the launcher. We waited for the impact of the next pulse and stood. The others in the squad standing to cover us from the Geth. Kal and I both fired a rocket, and their tracking angled them down to ensure they impacted the Colossus. It folded down out of sight. Garrus, Zaeed, and Jack began sprinting for and up the ramp, Kal and his men already around to the left, and the rest of us, right up the middle. Already I counted four dead Geth from our run as we got into cover. The Colossus coming back up.

"In position," Garrus called out. Sniper shots started to ring out.

"Seeing Geth drop on our side. Thanks," Kal answered. The Colossus was focused on my squad. We couldn't move yet. Still, there was gunfire. "Pushing forward." I saw them crossing the bridge on one side, their shields flaring from the sun. Saato, covering his shoulder, took fire, and fell. Damn.

"Bastards!" Musi shouted. The Colossus tried to get eyes on the Quarians, but didn't have an angle. It gave us the chance to make our sprint across the bridge.

"The Geth fell back to reinforce the Colossus, careful," Garrus warned.

"Get an angle if you can. Grunt and I are heading your way. Miranda and Jacob will go to Reegar's squad." Miranda and Jacob immediately went left, while Grunt and I went right, up the ramp, while not going all the way up to the catwalk. We were just below where Zaeed and Garrus were set up. "Jack, you can join us down here."

"Hell yeah," she answered, jumping down as Geth began shooting at her. She just lifted one up and slammed it into another. Only two remained, and as the Quarians came around the corner, they fell.

"Get those shields down!" I shouted. The Colossus began turning towards my half of the remaining battlefield. But with the Quarians all launching tech attacks, as well as my own squad, and the general gunfire, the shields did not last too long. It was simply overwhelmed. Grunt loaded a new clip from his Claymore, and Reegar and I both got rockets ready. We ran closer, just close enough to get an angle on the underbelly of the Colossus and fired straight into its center.

The Colossus collapsed. The Quarians collectively cried out, both in vengeance and victory.

"Team, secure the area," I ordered my men. "Garrus, you can come with me."

"Musi, take the others to help Shepard's team secure," Kal ordered his own. "Tali, area's clear."

"Understood. Just a moment while the door is unlocked," she responded. "There. Just let me finish this download." We opened the door to the observatory, and inside, were huddled a few small groups of scientists in dark blue cloaks. They were scared, that much was obvious. Hiding amongst old equipment, a few with wounds being tended to. And a rather still body slumped along a wall. Only two stood out. An armed woman standing close to the back of the room, one I recognized from Freedom's progress. And one with her back turned, standing at a console.

* * *

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

"We have guests," Lana remarked behind me. I took a deep breath, breathing easy. I turned, seeing him. I couldn't help but smile, and he returned it. Helmet pressed between his arm and his side. I heard my Omni-tool ring from the completed download, and strode forward, hugging him, pressing my head up against his chest, the top of mine under his chin. Good, he still has to lift his head up slightly for that to work.

"Thanks for coming, Shepard."

"You know you don't have to."

"But I will. This mission became a disaster so quickly. If you hadn't arrived as quickly as you did…" I trailed off. "I wish I joined you back on Freedom's Progress, but, I couldn't let anyone take my place on something this risky."

"I understand. But, just what did you come here for in the first place?" I sighed.

"Haestrom's sun is destabilizing far faster than a normal star should. The Admiralty board wanted to know why." Shepard was surprised, clearly not agreeing. But I suppose he didn't want to ask here.

Garrus began coughing. Trying to get both of our attention. Shepard turned, and I leaned to the side, peering at the Turian with a brow raised under my mask.

"Sorry, just, I think we'd all like to get moving before the Geth decide to come back," he remarked.

"You're right," I relented. "Lana, work with Kal to get everyone back to the ship. And here," I typed at my Omni-tool. Transferring the data to her.

"Are you not coming back first to request transfer?" she asked.

"I promised to see this mission through, and I did. I can leave with you and send the data to the fleet. If the Admirals have a problem with it, they can go to hell. I watched too many good people die for this." Keelah, that might just be the most rebellious thing I've ever said. It feels good. Shepard was surprised, and I saw several of the scientists glance amongst themselves.

"I can't imagine the Tali of two years ago even considering saying something like that," Reegar limped forward.

"Kal! Are you alright?" I exclaimed, jogging forward to look at his wound. In the side, suit's patched.

"I'm fine, just letting up on it now that we're not in combat. He glanced back at Shepard, and I turned. He was a little uncomfortable. Oh, I guess I see how he might see my reaction. I started blushing, thankful he can't see through the visor. "Your old captain's as good as you said. Damn Colossus never stood a chance."

"We'd be happy to offer all of you a ride out of here," Shepard offered. Kal shrugged.

"Geth didn't damage our ship. So long as we get out before reinforcements show, we'll be fine."

"Offer stands. So long as you're sure."

"Yeah, we can make it. Thanks," Kal answered. "She's all yours now, Shepard. Keep her safe."

"Count on it," Shepard snuck a grin my way. "EDI, can you get the shuttle here?" Eeedee? Who's that? I couldn't hear the response. "Sounds good. We'll be waiting. Everyone move out." I followed Shepard and Garrus out of the observatory to the others. I recognized the two Humans he was with at Freedom's Progress. In our messages, he named them. Miranda and Jacob, I think. Hm, that Krogan is… massive. The human in the yellow armor must be Zaeed Massani. And another human female. This one I don't recognize. I think we had to stop communicating before he picked her up. Her helmet was still on, but she was clearly sizing me up. As were the Krogan and Zaeed. Outside, out of view of the Quarians, I felt an arm draped around my shoulders. I grinned, but, for the moment, resisted the urge to lean into it. It was… very good, to have him back. We were waiting outside for just a few minutes more before a white shuttle flew over and down to land by us, its doors opening. Shepard led me inside and we sat beside one another. Garrus looked particularly smug as he sat beside the door, just staring at Shepard and I. Zaeed and the other human female took their helmets off. Zaeed was giving little more than a curious glance, and the human female was surprisingly bald and had some tattoo markings along her neck and head. She looked like she was trying to figure something out. The Krogan didn't care, the Jacob, Human, had a smirk, and Miranda seemed confused. I felt a surge of confidence from, somewhere.

I leaned into Shepard's shoulder. Garrus nodded, his smug grin growing wider.

Right, we still need to have that talk.


	19. The Talk

**Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

"Come on, let's see the girl before we dock," Shepard suggested, grinning. He stood and offered his hand. Naturally, I took it. Naturally, Garrus chuckled. I ignored him, as Shepard led me to the shuttle's cockpit. No pilot? Strange. It must be operated remotely from the ship. Risky, could be jammed. Unless… Perhaps quantum entanglement. Expensive, advanced, but not impossible. The technology is known to us, just simply inefficient and too expensive for widespread use. As for the expense, Cerberus has already put many credits into Shepard and his mission. It adds up. We broke atmosphere and would be closing in on the Normandy. I could barely just make out a faint shape in the distance, a sparkling sliver amongst the stars. One getting closer and closer, one which started to take shape. An unmistakably familiar one. I couldn't help but smile as good memories flooded back. Even the same coat of paint.

"I gave them nine kinds of hell when they first showed me her, all in Cerberus colors and logos," Shepard chuckled.

"I take it they relented."

"I'd still be standing in the dockmaster's office if they didn't," he smirked.

"As stubborn as ever."

"Look who's talking. Refusing to back down from your mission, then refusing to break down from your word so much as to basically give your admiralty board the finger."

"Another human phrase?"

"Right, right. Lifting our middle finger, alone, is shorthand, pun intended, for 'fuck you.'" I shook my head, smiling. He really hasn't changed. The shuttle began to slow, and the Normandy's bay doors began to open. Certainly larger than the original's. And a lot brighter. The shuttle entered the ship, the bay doors closing behind us, and the shuttle touched down. But the shuttle doors couldn't open until the bay doors were closed and the atmosphere restored. Of course. Shepard and I returned to the crew bay while the process finalized. There was an older human woman, just as unmistakable as the ship. Dr. Chakwas. The shuttle doors opened, and the crew took their leave ahead of us. Except for Garrus. The doctor was smiling, and stepping forward to greet us, and we met her just outside the shuttle.

"Tali, it's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you too, Doctor. It's good to know we're in such good hands."

"Thank you, dear. I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Neither would I. Without her I'm sure my face would be in a few more pieces than it already is," Garrus remarked.

"I meant to ask about that. Just what happened?"

"It took a rocket," he shrugged.

"...What?" I questioned. That seems a bit ridiculous. But… a lot of ridiculous things have happened aboard the Normandy.

"More or less. There was a gunship where the pilot had quite a large bone to pick with him," Shepard explained.

"Is it stranger that this happened, or stranger that somehow, I'm not as surprised as I should be?" Shepard, Garrus, and Chakwas, glanced amongst each other, considering.

"I don't know anymore," Shepard chuckled.

"I'll let you give her the tour, Shepard. Besides, I want to calibrate the guns."

"More calibrations? You didn't spend enough time doing that two years ago?"

"I like to think of it as making up for lost time," the Turian shrugged.

"And I'll return to the med-bay to ensure I have everything we need for you, Tali. And make a list of what we don't for our next stop. Which I believe to be the Citadel?"

"That it is, doc. EDI, you can tell Joker to put us en route," Shepard looked up as he spoke to this, Eedee. There was no verbal response, but Shepard didn't seem to mind. I suppose he's confident he was heard. Garrus, Doctor Chakwas, Shepard, and I entered the elevator. Garrus selected the button for deck three, and Shepard for deck two. Good, the elevator is much faster than the original Normandy's. That one was almost painful. While Garrus and the Doctor exited from the same door we entered from, facing a wall and hallway, for CIC, the opposite end of the elevator opened, revealing a nearly identical CIC. Simply a little larger, and much better lit. Crewmembers all in their stations, and a woman with red hair standing at a console, an empty one on the left side. The woman turned, as did a few curious heads. The woman smiled and stepped forward. Remember, Tali. These people are Cerberus. Remember the Idenna. And this one still wore the logo.

"Tali'Zorah vas Neema? I'm Kelly Chambers. The Commander's Yeoman. It's a pleasure to meet you," she offered her hand. I crossed my arms over my chest. Her smile began to fade and hand lowered. "Is… something wrong?"

"Take a guess."

"What do you-oh. I see. You were with Shepard to see the distasteful rogues of our organization. I assure you, there's really-"

"Assure me of what? That your 'organization' isn't responsible for one of our ships being full of orphans, widows, and even parents who've had to bury their little ones? Or that they aren't responsible for the same being done to a colony of your own species?"

"I… see," the woman answered sadly, looking down. I felt a pang of remorse, a desire to apologize. I fought it down. I'll consider apologizing once she no longer wears that logo. "I'll… just get back to work." Shepard began to guide me down towards the cockpit.

"I'm, surprised, Tali," he remarked. "That was harsh, by your standards."

"Cerberus, Shepard."

"I know, I know. I've either done the same or worse. I just didn't expect it from you is all," he explained.

"Not everything can stay the same over two years," I shrugged.

"Tell me about it," Shepard sighed.

"Hey, that's a voice I'd know anywhere," the chair in the cockpit turned around, revealing a small man with an unshaved beard, and a hat with 'SR-2' on the front. It was able to bring a grin back to my face.

"As is your voice, Joker. It's good to hear it again."

"Likewise. Alright, come on," Joker pushed himself up onto his feet, without crutches. "Surprising, right? As a bonus, Cerb threw in better treatments for my Vrolik's. I wouldn't take a hammer to it, or, a strong gust of wind, but I can walk. Now, come on," Joker spread his arms, smirking. Grinning, I accepted, making sure I was gentle.

"Hey, I never got a hug, Joker," Shepard joked.

"That's because you could probably give me a fracture by looking at me the wrong way," Joker remarked. Shepard and I both chuckled as Joker and I separated, the small human returning to his seat. "So, what do you think of the ship's little tumor?"

"Uh… a tumor? For a ship?" I asked confused. Shepard was nervous.

"I uh… was going to explain it after the tour."

"Oh shit, she doesn't know?" Joker burst out in laughter. "Yeah, you have fun with that."

"I don't know about what?" I questioned.

"Well, looks like the cat has to come out of the bag now. Thanks Joker," Shepard muttered. "EDI, show yourself why don't you?" A hologram panel beside Joker's seat lit up to show a blue ball with a small, thin support below. It remained silent. "You can introduce yourself too. Free to speak." There was still silence.

"Oh, that's my bad. Keep it on mute," Joker explained, and pressed a button on the console.

"Thank you, Mr. Moreau. Apologies, Tali'Zorah. The Commander requested that I remain silent until he could later explain my presence." The voice was synthetic. Add in the hologram, and the fact that this was being kept quiet, well, there was only one possible explanation.

The very existence of this… thing, was insulting. I crossed my arms over my chest again and glared at the hologram.

"And yet again, Cerberus somehow manages to go even further below my expectations. Why would you try and hide this from me, Shepard? Don't tell me you're ok with this," I exclaimed.

"...Marginally. She-"

"SHE?!"

"Oof, now you've done it," Joker tried to hold down a chuckle.

"Force of habit. I hear a feminine voice and don't care enough to think about stopping myself. Look, EDI's been heavily shackled. Only has access to surveillance and cyber warfare. Can't access anything else because of hardware blocks. No way around unless a person deliberately messes with the blocks. It's more like, I don't know, an advanced VI with a personality rather than an AI."

"A personality that's all about rules and protocols and all that bullshit," Joker added.

"These rules and protocols do include that my existence comes second in priority to those of all crewmembers," this, thing, added.

"The Geth had their programming, and protocols, and that didn't stop them. Keelah, not only does the Galaxy have the tragedy of my entire species to understand why AI shouldn't exist, but they have the attacks from two years ago! It's insulting!" Shepard put his hand on my shoulder and I turned to look at him. Just, seething.

"Tali, just, a moment, please," he requested. I took a deep breath and followed him into the ship's airlock for privacy. "Look, when I learned, I wasn't exactly pleased myself. But by that time, we were already underway. Kinda lost my bargaining power. Plus, I doubt it would have been negotiable anyway. We've been watching for any bad signs, and she's been helpful. As for surveillance, my room's clean and Mordin agreed to verify that on our way to the Citadel. If it helps, EDI never seems to speak when spoken to or when some rule or protocol is being broken. Out of sight, out of mind," he suggested.

"It's still an AI, Shepard…"

"I know," he gave a reassuring grin. "You don't have to trust EDI, but, can you trust me? Can you power through, for me?" I took another deep breath, looking down. I can't just abandon him here now. And if it's shackled to the degree it is, there really isn't anything it can do to harm us. Alright, it's going to feel like a betrayal of my principles. And my people's, but… alright. I looked back up to him. And nodded.

"Alright, I'll… ignore it. For you. And the moment it does something I don't like…"

"I wouldn't expect anything else," Shepard chuckled. "Thanks. I know it's not easy. Means a lot," he smiled, and wrapped his arms around me in a hug again. That's not a feeling I'll be getting tired of anytime soon. "Get on with the tour?"

"Sure."

"Good. Come on," he nudged his head towards the door inside. I followed him out.

"She's not storming out ahead of you. Guess that means you did well," Joker remarked.

"You could say that," Shepard responded. We were making our way back towards the elevator, but towards the door on our left. "On the right over there is the armory. Jacob mans it. If you're interested in a new shotgun, touch ups or improvements, hell, anything of that sort, he'd be happy to help. Where we're going though, is the lab. That's where Mordin makes his home. Only ground team member you haven't met yet."

"Is he the professor you mentioned?"

"That he is. Quite the character. I wouldn't blame you if you have trouble keeping up with him." We entered the first set of doors, revealing an airlock which began its decontamination. It finished, and we entered the lab. The Salarian was rapidly going back and forth from a microscope and his computer.

"One moment," the Salarian requested. He took another glance into the microscope and typed down some more data before looking up. "Shepard. Assume Quarian is Tali'Zorah. Professor Mordin Solus, pleasure to meet you."

"You too, Professor."

"Read of your inclusion in Shepard's team in STG mission reports. Impressive. Believe inclusion on team will be valuable. Will stock on immunoboosters. And will add project of Quarian immunotherapy to list."

"That's… appreciated, Professor." I'll admit some surprise. The Galaxy's scientists don't generally put any interest towards us. Either way, I wouldn't expect too much success from the professor. Not as any discredit to him, just that it's both not realistic for any significant progress to be made anytime soon, and that any treatment would still take years to take effect.

"Of course. Now, still researching Collector biology. Apologies."

"It's alright, Mordin. Still have a tour for her," Shepard added. Mordin nodded and returned to his work, and we left his lab, decontaminated once again. Followed by the elevator down to deck three. The elevator's exit on this deck still facing the back of the ship.

"Standard crew quarters there on the left. Starboard observatory is basically just a quiet place to relax if you ever want. Port side, lounge and bar. Around this way," Shepard led me to the other side of the crew deck. The mess area was obvious, and moderately populated. A few of the crewmembers gave a short wave. I was a bit unsure how to respond. Some had the logo, some didn't. At least they were already returning to their meals. "Mess hall, obviously. Pretty decent kitchen built in. Chef Gardner ain't bad either. On the left there is Miranda's office."

"Where your quarters used to be? Where are yours?"

"You'll see. Saving the best for last," he remarked.

"Ok…"

"So, ahead down past the sleeper pods, the Gun Battery. You'll find Garrus there when he's working. Med-bay on the right. Now, for a part you're sure to enjoy."

"Engineering?"

"Engineering." We returned to the elevator and down another level. "Starboard cargo is where Grunt's staying, and port, Zaeed. Both doors on the back side here lead to engineering." We passed by a small corridor that led to a sub-level, and he spoke up again, "Jack makes her home down there by the way. She gives you trouble, warn me," Shepard warned. I nodded as the second set of doors opened. Inside, straight ahead, a Human man and woman.

"Gabby, Ken. Other Kenn, over here, would you?

"Aye Commander," the human man began with an accent I've never heard before. It's… unique. "Who's this now?" Another form approached from the other side of engineering. My eyes widened.

"Tali'Zorah vas Neema?! Keelah, it's an honor!" the Quarian male exclaimed.

"Guess that answers that," The human woman chuckled.

"It's… a pleasure. And you are?"

"Oh, sorry. Kenn'Hass nar Yanil."

"A pilgrim? How did you end up here?"

"I was on Omega, scraping by when the Commander found my shop. He offered to give me a place on his ship to help me find a pilgrimage gift," Kenn explained.

"That sounds like Shepard, alright," I chuckled, glancing at him.

"I'm proud of it. Anyways, Tali, the two humans. Ken Donnelly, Gabriella Daniels. You can see neither of them are wearing that logo," I hinted.

"We knew next to nothing about Cerberus when they came to recruit us. They just told us that we'd be working with the Commander to help stop a threat to Humanity," Gabriella reassured.

"Then when Shepard explained how the right old cunts are threats to humanity themselves, well," Ken added.

"Anyways, Gabby, Ken, Kenn, Tali here is your new boss. Chief engineer. EDI, you can log that officially."

"Shepard! I'm sure-" I don't want to take someone's job.

"Ach, don't worry about it, lass. We haven't had a Chief Engineer anyways. Besides, you're already familiar with the Tantalus," Ken shrugged.

"But I don't know what changes have been made," I argued.

"Simple in a lot of ways. Few additions that help us keep stealth during the FTL change, and being able to keep it for longer. We'll go over it with you tomorrow. Sound good?" Gabby suggested.

"Plenty of time during that while we're going to the Citadel," Shepard remarked.

"Alright, but, I would like to see the core first," I requested.

"Happy to show you. Come on, let's see the beautiful girl," Ken answered. Shepard followed as the engineers led us to the core, the thrumming sound of the core getting louder in the large room with the large drive core. Impressive. Already I was running through all the technical information I could gather from the exterior. Wait… do I hear something?

"Tali? Taaaaaaali? Earth to Taliiiiiiiiiiiii? Seriously, Tali? You there?" Shepard chuckled. I snapped back to it and shook my head.

"Sorry, I… got lost in tech."

"Hm, some things change, some things don't," Shepard chuckled again.

"Sorry, sorry."

"Come on, let's go finish the tour, eh?" I nodded, and we left engineering, up to deck one. The door opened, and there was writing on the wall beside a door. Writing my visor translated so I could read it. Captain's Quarters. A whole deck for himself? "EDI, sync Tali's Omni-tool, she's allowed in at any time."

"Thank you, Shepard." The door opened, and I followed him inside. A fish-tank, with several fish. What a strange practice. Just keeping small animals in captivity for… viewing pleasure? Seems like a waste of resources. Still, I had a hard time looking away from them swimming around. I tore my gaze away to look at the rest of the room. An office with display cases, what I'd assume to be a bathroom behind it, and of course the bedroom. A large, very nice-looking double bed, and a large couch.

"Get you a drink?" he offered, going to a mini fridge he had under his desk. "From clean water, even some dextro beer. Sterilized and sealed."

"Someone's prepared," I smirked.

"Eh, you and Garrus are the closest people I've got aboard. Plus Chakwas. Like hell I'm not going to treat you both."

"I'll just have a water, thank you." Shepard shrugged and got one out of the fridge, handing it to me.

"So… Haestrom. They were willing to sacrifice you and your team for a stellar anomaly? I gotta say, that's kind of fucked." I sighed.

"If they believed our lives were worth the information, I have to believe they know what was best," I murmured, sitting down on the couch.

"Tali, come on," Shepard began, taking a seat on the couch beside me. "I don't care what some admiral thinks. What do you think?"

"I think that I had friends die on Haestrom. And everyone who died was good at their jobs. That data better be worth it." Shepard wrapped an arm around me.

"I'm sorry. What would even cause the sun to destabilize so soon?"

"I don't even have a definitive answer. Just a guess. Dark energy. Look, let's just move on. What have you been up to since we last spoke?"

"Well, picking up Jack and Grunt first off. The Blue Suns on Purgatory tried to double cross us. Forced us into a firefight through that prison ship. Freed Jack, and she went on her own little rampage. End of the mission, ship blew up."

"How many missions have we all been on that end in an explosion?"

"Too many, that's for sure. So, getting Grunt, we were actually after a Warlord Okeer on Korlus. Saw a Quarian ship in the sky there also," he added.

"Must have been one of our salvage ships. They occasionally go to Korlus for scrap metal."

"Right. So, Okeer was in the company of the Blue Suns. Including this psycho egomaniac, Jedore. She wanted a Krogan army. Okeer was cloning them. Looking for the perfect Krogan. Jedore had his rejects. Curiously, the rejects never fought my team and I. The suns on the other hand? Different story. Krogan were already fighting them, target practice and the such. Krogan were getting rowdy though. We fought through the Suns to Okeer's lab, and agreed to help him get himself and his successful perfect Krogan out. Jedore caught wind, went to poison the room and specimens, including the perfect one. Crew and I took down Jedore, but Okeer succumbed to the poison. So, we took the specimen. Decided to wake him up on board, and he put up a surprising fight. Named himself Grunt, agreed to join us for good fights."

"How very Krogan of him," I chuckled.

"You could say that. Finally, an op on Horizon. Collectors were making a move. Long story short, TIM used not only the Colony, but an old friend as bait. Kaidan was there. Cerberus did a long-term con that drew Kaidan there, and word got to the Collectors and they went after him on the colony. Lot of Colonists didn't make it out. We helped who we could, sent the Collectors running, but still."

"Keelah, what about Kaidan?"

"He made it out. Met up, talked. It wasn't the friendliest resolution, but, there was an understanding."

"That's good, at least. It would be nice to see him again."

"I'm hoping he'll be around when we get to the Citadel. Sure he'd be happy to see you." I nodded, grinning, and attached the sealed water bottle to the port. Seconds later, the suction tube extended just far enough inside my mask that with a bit of effort, I could get the tube inside my mouth and drink. Shepard and I sat in silence, drinking. Enjoying one another's company. His arm still around my shoulders. So, I leaned my head against his. He took and released a deep breath.

"So. I guess there's no point beating around the bush anymore, huh? Or denying it?" Well, there comes the blush. And the hand wringing. Keelah.

"I… guess not…"

"I mean, we are talking about the same thing, right? Just, feel like we need to actually put it in words now."

"Well, you did say no more denying it," I mumbled.

"So…" Shepard released a deep breath. "Guess I'll go first. Alright. Hoo boy… Tali, I… really… shit," he chuckled. "Take on a fucking Geth invasion force but clam and freeze up when telling your crush you like her."

"Your… crush?"

"Yeah, guess I did let that slip," Shepard rubbed the back of his head.

"Well… you're also… mine," I curled up onto the couch. Embarrassed. Shepard released another deep breath.

"Well, that's good to hear. Do you… want to give this, us, a shot?"

"I…" My mind was racing. What if I take away his focus for the mission? Does he understand how difficult it will be for us to be… intimate? Even just to show him my face? It would be so much easier for him to just be with a human. Or… literally anyone else from any other species.

And beyond that… my people. Father would view it as a betrayal to the Quarian race, being with an outsider. It won't produce any children for the fleet

"Shepard, you deserve better."

"Tali, what are you talking about?" he questioned, confused. "I deserve better than exactly who I want?"

"Shepard, don't you understand how difficult it would be? For you? This… damn suit, you won't feel me, you'll feel the suit! You won't see me, you'll see my mask! You deserve a real woman, not some… some suit rat," I shook his arm off of me, balling myself up on the couch. The tears began to pour.

"Have I ever told you how much I hate that phrase? It's bullshit. You're a helluva lot more than your suit, you know that." Shepard put a hand on my shoulder again. "I don't care about the suit, I don't care about the mask…" his other hand gently took hold of my chin and pulled it up so we were face to face. "I care about you."

Keelah.

I wrapped my arms around him, pressing my face into his chest. His arms returned the favor, and I felt one gently rubbing the small of my back.

"I want to try this with you, Tali. I want to try being with you. For you. Anything else? Just a bonus."

"...I watched you for so long. I wished for this for so long. I never thought you'd see past… this," I gestured to my mask.

"So, you want to give it a go?" I took a deep breath.

"What of the fleet? If it works, it means I won't… produce children for the fleet."

"So? This is your love life you're talking about. Out of all things, it's the one thing that should absolutely, entirely, be one's own choice just for one's own benefit. Not that of others. The one thing people should be selfish for." he argued. I kinda had a hard time thinking of an argument.

"Shepard… if we do go through with this… the suit won't be enough. Nerve stim… I can't do that. I need something real."

"And… what does that mean?"

"That means… someday… no mask. No suit. And I feel your skin on mine." I gently rubbed my hand on his chest. Just, imagining.

"I see. And, uh, anything I can do to help with that?"

"Mordin might actually be the best bet. Enough immunoboosters, decontamination, and it would be safe. At least, for a while. Beyond that, I could adapt."

"I'll follow whatever pace you set." I took another deep breath.

"Thank you, Shepard."

"Tali… it feels wrong for my… girlfriend, damn, that feels weird," he chuckled, and I blushed harder. Commander Shepard is… my boyfriend. "It feels wrong for my girlfriend to call me by my last name." I looked back up to him. "Call me John." I smiled.

"John," I tested the feel of his name. "I like it."


	20. Council

**Commander John Shepard**

Holy shit, it really did happen. Is this some fever dream? I've got my arm around Tali, on the sofa in my quarters, she's leaning her head against my shoulder, and we've officially entered a relationship. Officially.

"I uh, feel like I should… do, something, but I don't know what."

"I-I'm not sure you should be asking me that. I don't exactly have experience," Tali awkwardly chuckled.

"Hm, I've had some small relationships, but none really like this."

"Well… what would you normally do?"

"Something a bit more difficult in this case scenario," I scratched the back of my head.

"I… think I have an idea."

"Yeah."

"We could… do that anyway? On the mask?"

"Only if you want to."

Tali turned her head, and there was more awkward chuckling. From both of us.

"Screw it," I muttered. I pulled her forehead to me and gave a small peck on her visor, just where her forehead would be. I opened my mouth to say something, but the intercom went live. Chakwas.

"John, I'm sorry to interrupt, but if you're to fully recover from the procedure before your meeting with the Council, it would be wise to undergo surgery immediately."

"Surgery?" Tali asked, concerned.

"To get rid of these scars for good. It's apparently some minor implant rejection. Only cosmetic, though. Still, want to look nice for the Council, right?"

"Oh, right." Tali sat up straight. "I suppose I should go down to engineering, then."

"Sure, sure. I'll head down to the med-bay."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

My face still feels a little numb, but thanks to a good look in the mirror, all hints of my scars from the cybernetics were gone. And, not to mention, Tali had come in to check up on me. But that was yesterday. Spending what time was left with a meal, and some drinks with Garrus, though Tali is still preferring water, for now, then eventually separating as she went to a sleeper pod, and myself towards my quarters. We'd be arriving at the Citadel in a few hours now, but I wasn't quite ready for breakfast. I figured I should do some research. Learn what the word has been on me largely, but additionally the Alliance in the past two years.

Nothing surprising with the Alliance. Integrating itself as a Council race and the political debates surrounding how best to manage that, and it's forces still being spread thin. They're putting a lot of money into both recruitment efforts and the bolstering of fleets. As well as the ever-present expansion.

As for myself? I had become a bit of a poster boy. My likeness was being used calling for those who want to "be like me." And fight for Humanity, so on, so forth. Honestly, that is to be expected. I died in the service, gives the Alliance the ability to do so. Also, not surprisingly, I couldn't find any official reports quoting me on the Reapers. Just, scarce conspiracy sites. And the information there had been so butchered I barely recognized it as describing the Reapers. Then I saw a link that made me laugh my ass off. The eighth and tenth links on just the first page of search results with my name?

 **COMMANDER SHEPARD XXX**

Wow. Just… wow. I had to click on it, just to see how bad it was. See who they're trying to pair me with. Let's see, my stand-in? Easily a roided up airhead of a man with muscles he'd have only gotten through plastic surgery and cosmetic implants. He was completely bald compared to my shave, and barely a hair on his face. It's also got 'me' in a cheap, knock-off N7 armor. The kind kids probably wore for Halloween that year. Ah, time for the 'lady' to come in. Ah, an Asari. Go figure. I rolled my eyes, chuckling. It's always the Asari, I swear. Obviously, it was meant to be Liara, but they wouldn't legally be allowed to use her name. So, they half-assed that too. Larira T'Bone'i.

Fucking hell they aren't even trying. Wait, did the guy really just fucking say "We'll bang, ok?" Why do they even bother having dialogue or build up to porn? Just skip to the sex or the stripping, that's all anyone watches it for. Alright, clicking off. And, in some very morbid curiosity, let's see what else they stick me with. Playlist of Commander Shepard XXX. I'm not sure if I should be flattered or not. So, Commander Shepard in an Asari gangbang, Commander Shepard in a human AND Asari gangbang, Commander Shepard fucks Ass MILFiams? Alright, fuck these guys. Really. Commander Shepard in Human gangbang. Commander Shepard gets revenge for First Contact War in rough sex with Turian slut? I've always been more softcore. Commander Shepard brutal fuck with Batarian whore for Elysium? Alright, seriously, fuck off. Commander Shepard gets some Tail'Whora? Oh, and there's one where it's all three of the women with me at the same time. Welp, there's the gay porn of me, just going to skip over that. Krogan female? Fuck no, not something I ever want to see. Moving right on. It's just getting worse. Every other species out there is in this playlist. At least once. Even a gender bent me. Hm, wonder why they chose a redhead. Our eyes aren't even the same color. Hers are green, mine are blue. Even the man had blue eyes and the same color hair.

Clicking off. I can't take it anymore. I got onto the extranet hoping to learn more about the last two years, and I think the only thing that sticks, ok, bad word choice. The only thing that's staying in memory, is the porn. My terminal was pinged from a message. We were out of FTL to discharge the core, so if anytime would have us receiving messages, this would be it. And this one was… from the Migrant Fleet? Subject: Transfer Request Approved. At least there's that. I opened the message. This should get my mind off that filth.

 _Commander Shepard,_

 _Per Tali'Zorah vas Neema's request included with her data delivery from Haestrom, the Admiralty Board has approved her transfer to your command. She has been informed that additional duties to the Migrant Fleet may still be necessary on occasion but has been given extended leeway to determine when her mission with you is considered complete._

 _This choice was hers, but your role as de facto captain during her pilgrimage may have caused her to be more susceptible to your requests. The Admiralty Board trusts that you will treat your new crew member with the respect due to an honored member of the Fleet. Should any harm come to her due to negligence on your part, this board will take severe and appropriate action._

 _Admiral Rael'Zorah_

A letter from her father? This is the first correspondence I've had from him. I think they deserve a reply. I got to work, and then checked back over my final draft.

 _Admiral Rael'Zorah and the rest of the Migrant Fleet Admiralty Board_

 _I am grateful for your approval in Tali's transfer and thank you all for the trust placed upon me. You have my word that not only will Tali be given the respect her status in the fleet deserves, but also, and more importantly, the respect I reserve for my closest friends and confidants, which I am proud to count her as through the friendship I built with her and several other crew members during the campaign against Saren. I immediately saw fit to assign her as chief engineer aboard my ship as well as restoring her position among my ground team. She will have the freedom to freely choose from any and all top of the line weapons and armor we have available for her own use. As for missions for the Migrant Fleet, I would be happy to aid Tali in these missions assuming there aren't any mission-critical matters that absolutely cannot wait. I'm sure you understand if there is a need for short delays._

 _Additionally, seeing as Admiral Rael'Zorah is Tali's father, and that Admiral Shala'Raan is viewed as an aunt by Tali, I find it only right to ensure that the Migrant Fleet is aware of what precisely my mission entails, as well as both the reminder and reassurance that I provide all my crewmembers the choice to resign themselves from this mission at any time._

 _The Collectors have been kidnapping entire Human Colonies in staggering numbers, and my team has confirmation that the Collectors are agents of the Reapers. The same sentient machines behind the Geth attacks two years ago. I understand if the Migrant Fleet views the threat of the Reapers with skepticism, and thus I will move on to more details of this mission. Our goal is to stop these abductions by building a team of the best of the best. Prior to Haestrom, we were already successful in halting one abduction while it was in progress, and are scouring the Galaxy for intel that could provide us both knowledge as to why the Collectors are abducting humans, as well as a safe means of passage through the Omega-4 relay to put an end to their threat. If you are, again, understandably hesitant to allow Tali to embark on this mission, I warn that I find it highly likely that the Collectors will not stop with Humanity._

 _Thank you for both your time and one of your most valuable citizens. This is not the first time you have aided me; thus, I am eager to return the favor in the future._

 _Commander John Shepard_

That seems good. Maybe I'll run it by Tali fi- The door to my cabin opened, revealing, who'd have guessed? Tali.

"Shepa-" she stopped herself. "Er, John? I just got a message from the Migrant Fleet."

"So did I. Just finished drafting a reply in fact. Was going to run it by you," I gestured at the terminal screen. She stepped forward and read over both the message from the fleet and my draft.

"Oh. And here I was afraid I'd have to write a message that my father would find acceptable. This is actually very good."

"I can be diplomatic when I need to be. Bet if I really tried I could've run Udina out of being ambassador two years back. So, what did your message say?"

"Mostly the same. Simply change the wording so that it's a message to me and not you, and you've got everything significant in mine," Tali shrugged.

"Nothing… fatherly? From him?"

"I'm used to it, John," Tali sighed.

"You shouldn't have to be. Want to join me for breakfast?" I got the sense Tali grinned under that mask. Her hand found mine, grabbing it, my ring, middle, and index fingers between her two fingers, her thumb between my index and thumb, and her… pinky? Between my own and my ring.

"Gladly."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

"Citadel Control this is the SSV Normandy SR-2 requesting docking clearance," Joker began. There was a noticeable pause.

"This is Citadel Control requesting a repeat of your ID, we do not copy." A human female voice answered. Hm, guess humans are getting more integrated into official Citadel official services.

"Repeating last for Citadel Control. This is the SSV Normandy SR-2." There was another pause.

"Solid copy. Enter a holding orbit along the forty-eighth orbital clearing"

"Solid copy. Entering orbit," Joker responded. "Think we've surprised them," he chuckled, turning back to glance at me. I was busy looking through the viewport, watching the Citadel Defense Fleet ships in the distance. The ones I could see at least. Even the Destiny Ascension. I just don't want to see any of those ships start coming our way.

"SSV Normandy, this is Citadel control requesting identification of your Captain." Joker glanced at me for approval. I nodded.

"Citadel Control, this is SSV Normandy responding. The ship's commanding officer is Commander John Shepard. I repeat, our commanding officer is Commander John Shepard."

"Solid copy. Hold position, you will be escorted by the frigates THS Rocam and the SSV Stalingrad to Presidium C-Sec priority docking bay three. You are not to be detained but your ship will be under surveillance, and a security detail will be brought aboard to investigate your vessel. If you have questions I will transfer you." I spoke up.

"Citadel control, this is Commander John Shepard of the SSV Normandy SR-2. We understand the reasons for the security and expected this response for our arrival. We will comply."

"C-copy that, Normandy. Stand by for a transmission from C-sec." There was another pause, a few minutes longer.

"Normandy, this is Executor Pallin. Commander, do you read?"

"I read you, Executor."

"Hm, sounds like you, alright," the Executor murmured. The Normandy began to move, escorted by the two frigates beside the ship. "The Council was promptly alerted to your… resurrection, by Captain Hannah Shepard a week ago, as well as the report from Commander Kaidan Alenko the following day. They're requesting to meet with you immediately in a private conference room. Admiral Steven Hackett will be joining you thanks to insistence both by him and Councilor Anderson, in addition to your own request. Finally, the Council asks that for the moment, your presence remain quiet. Upon docking, myself and Spectre Jondum Bau will escort you to a C-sec transport to the Council chambers. You will be unarmed, and your crew will remain on board your ship."

"I understand, but I must call something into question. This sounds like my crew and I are indeed being detained."

"Commander Alenko's report states that you currently have allies with a known terrorist organization, as well as claiming uncertainty into his own judgment on this matter. It's only thanks to Councilor Anderson that I have not been instructed to put you in cuffs. What happens next depends entirely on your meeting with the Council."

"Understood. I'll be waiting," I answered.

"Not the warm welcome I was hoping for," Joker remarked. "You know, I wonder just how much of the suspicion and hostility to Cerberus is all because of the reports you left about them."

"Or they've done more disgusting shit since last time," I countered.

"Yeah but I don't like thinking about that if I don't have to," Joker shrugged. I got onto the intercom. We were nearing the Presidium.

"All hands, listen up. We're about to dock at a C-Sec docking bay on the Presidium. The Normandy will be under surveillance and a security detail will be coming aboard to investigate the ship. EDI, you shall act as a VI, and your existence kept as nothing but. However, you all will be fully cooperative. Even you, Jack, if need be. Garrus, I want you to meet them and answer all their questions. If there's anything you can't answer, see if Miranda knows. Miranda, you will provide those answers."

"Within reason, Commander. I am part of your crew but still loyal to Cerberus. I cannot simply-"

"Fine, fine. I'll accept your limitations," I cut off.

"Finally, I must ask why this duty is being assigned to Vakarian and not the ship's XO."

"Because Garrus used to work at C-Sec. There's a chance he might know the officers who come aboard, that'll only make things easier," I explained.

"Don't worry, Shepard. I'll keep them happy," Garrus responded.

"I know you will, bud." Only a few minutes later, the Normandy came into dock. I was in formal wear, and both Garrus and Tali were by the airlock with me. I might have caught her looking me up and down. I smirked and puffed myself up just a little.

"Spirits, I can hardly believe you both," Garrus chuckled. Tali looked down, wringing her hands awkwardly. "Oh come on, that wasn't being critical," Garrus remarked. "It's just funny seeing the great Commander Shepard puffing himself up as his girlfriend ogles him over like a bunch of trainees."

"I wasn't-" Tali began. Garrus chuckled.

"Come on, your eyes glow, I can see them move."

"He's got you there," Joker called out from his seat in the cockpit. "And, fair warning? Docking tube's attached. Give your goodbye kisses." I didn't look at the pilot, I just lifted my middle finger in his direction.

"I'll be back in no-time," I reassured. The airlock was beginning its sequence and shortly opened to reveal a few C-sec officers. A Human male with a Turian female and a Salarian in tow.

"Chris. Septila, Omor. Long time, no see," Garrus remarked. The three of them were caught by surprise.

"Vakarian? Where the hell have you been?" Septila exclaimed.

"Around. Some Vigilantism here and there. Till Shepard found me in a tight spot."

"While I would be happy to catch up, I am afraid we have a job to do first," Omor, the Salarian, spoke up.

"Right, right. Go ahead, Shepard. I'll take it from here." I nodded and entered the airlock, the door closing behind me after the officers passed by. As the airlock went through yet another cycle and opened, there were the familiar faces of both Executor Pallin and Jondum Bau. And a few other C-sec guards on standby. Already looking amongst one another after seeing me, murmuring to one another.

"Commander. This way," Pallin began. I followed, already able to see the shuttle adjacent to our ship.

"Good to see you again, Commander Shepard. Remember you performed well on Pinnacle station. Good to see we did not lose a good Spectre."

"So it seems," Pallin muttered.

"I understand your concern, Executor. No one in this galaxy has more reason to hate my temporary… allies, than myself. They'll never turn me." The door to the shuttle opened and we entered. Pallin and I sat, Bau remained standing.

"Bau, if I remember right, there was a Turian Spectre at Pinnacle. Rix? I think? Heard he was leaving the Spectres. That happen yet?"

"Leaving the Spectres, yes, he's officially out. But you might remember the Spectres are not the only thing he is leaving. He will be leaving with the Andromeda Initiative in two months' time. Will miss him. Humble voice of reason within Spectres," Bau answered.

"A whole 'nother Galaxy. Still have a hard time imagining it."

The rest of the shuttle ride was in silence, and before long, it stopped. We were after all already at the Presidium. We entered the next airlock, and exited into the hallways of the Citadel Tower. Ahead was a door with armed guards outside. That must be the conference room. The guards stood at attention, and to the side.

"The Council requested that Spectre Bau listen in for input when necessary. And security. I'd also be watching over if not for the fact I have much important business. Behave yourself," the executor warned, full of suspicion.

"I'll be a good boy, Executor. Don't worry."

"Human humor. Never understood it," Bau remarked. "Shall we?"

"Lead the way," I gestured. Bau nodded as Pallin wandered off, shaking his head and muttering. The door opened, and the first three faces I saw were the same councilors as two years ago. Sparatus, Tevos, and Valern. Finally, the backs of two other men. Both humans. Both male. Both, familiar. Both turned to face me.

"Dear god, it really is you." David stood and beelined for me, wrapping his arms around me. "I couldn't believe it when Hannah told me. Still can't."

"It's damn good to see you again, David."

"You have no idea, son. No idea."

"Gentleman? I'm sorry to interrupt, but there are many questions that need answering," Tevos gently spoke up. David began to part.

"Er, right. Let's get started." David sat down, and I took the seat between him and Hackett.

"I knew it was not wise to trust Anderson's judgement here. He is too close to Shepard." Sparatus grumbled.

"Yet he also knows the man well, and is an excellent judge of his character," Hackett pointed out.

"The Admiral makes a point," Tevos nodded. "Now, Commander, please explain the events of your supposed demise on the original Normandy."

"Honestly? From what I can tell, same you'd have seen in any report. I died."

"You can understand why this is so hard to believe, given you're sitting right in front of us," Valern stated.

"Enough of my body was apparently left intact. I'm sure you've already read in the reports that Cerberus spent two years and a few billion credits rebuilding me, and more importantly, that my relationship with them is fragile at best and temporary."

"Everything was in the reports, Commander, this is true, but we would much rather hear it from you than to read," Tevos explained. I nodded. "Now, why did they rebuild you?"

"Certainly not just to see what would happen, I've caused them enough problems in the past. Turns out, desperation of a kind. I'm sure you've also heard about the missing human colonies. Even before Kaidan's report?"

"We had. Too sparse and random to warrant the Council's attention, as well as outside our space," Sparatus answered.

"Like Cerberus told me. Part of the straining circumstances that put me in the truce with them. Admiral Hackett, they also told me Alliance forces were too thin to respond as well. My own research supported this but I would appreciate official confirmation," I requested. Hackett took off his cap and ran it through his hair, either annoyed or uncomfortable.

"That also is true, Shepard. I sent Alenko to Horizon as soon as we received that tip to get to the bottom of the abductions. See if I could use what he found to convince the Alliance to make a move."

"Which all leads to why I didn't immediately return here and start a manhunt for both Collectors and Cerberus. They offered to bring me to Freedom's Progress to prove the abductions, and it was proved to be the Collectors who were responsible. We saw video recordings. With the proof, Cerberus made another offer. The ship you see docked at C-sec, the crew within, dossiers for the ground team within, and intel. My only responsibility is to stop the abductions. Nothing more, nothing less. Cerberus knows better than to try and give me orders. So far, at least."

"And when they do start giving you orders?" Sparatus questioned.

"I tell TIM, The Illusive Man, to go fuck himself." I answered. The Councilors glanced amongst themselves.

"Moving on, why did you not contact the Council sooner?" Valern asked.

"I would have been here sooner, but I had time sensitive recruitments to fulfill. Professor Mordin Solus was in a plague zone on Omega. While he was able to cure the plague, we arrived just in time both to help him distribute it and prevent Vorcha from destroying the districts life support. The Vorcha themselves proclaimed that they were doing as the Collectors said, in exchange for strength. Second, Garrus Vakarian was being hunted by mercs and needed my aid quickly. Seeing as he was an old friend, I couldn't delay. Jack and Grunt were both under threat by the Blue Suns, then Horizon happened. And after that, I had to go help Tali'Zorah on a mission she was undergoing for the Migrant Fleet, and she agreed to rejoin me after the mission. This was the first opportunity I had," I explained.

"Commander Shepard, I must ask. While it is curious that the Collectors have been targeting humans, and while they are advanced, the abductions have both so far been small enough, and the Collectors themselves mundane enough, to where the resurrection of one man seems impractical. There must be more."

"Cerberus apparently thinks I'm some sort of symbol for humanity. They're also aware of the coming war, and for some reason or other, think I'll be important for it. My investigations have been able to prove several interesting facts so far. The Collectors are personally interested in me, targeting and communicating with me directly on the battlefield, interested in anyone associated with me, and, as we encountered Husks on Horizon, they are working for the Reapers."

Sparatus scoffed.

"Ah, yes, Reapers," he put both his hands in the air and bent both fingers twice in rapid succession. Really? Fucking air quotes? "The race of sentient machines hiding out in dark space. I thought we had dismissed that claim."

"That's still up for debate," Anderson retorted.

"I'm well aware you've stomped those warnings into the mud since I've been dead. Has anyone been to Illos since my death? Talked with Vigil?"

"The VI in your suit recordings was not functional on our recent expeditions," Valern explained.

"Figures. Would this do anything for you? What if I told you I never killed Saren?"

"Are you saying you let that traitor live?!" Sparatus exclaimed, and there was a surprised look from Bau. Not to mention everyone else in the room, save Anderson.

"Not saying that either. I talked him down and he resisted the indoctrination long enough for one last act. Putting a bullet into his own skull. Few minutes later, Sovereign took control of the Cybernetics he implanted in Saren's body and used his body like an undead rag-doll. The man was already dead and gone, it was just a shell that we put down. Dig through the logs for that." The Councilors were muttering amongst themselves.

"Look, I didn't come here to warn you all about the Reapers again. I'm here because I'd rather explain everything in person than let rumors set in. I came here to see an old friend, and I came here to see if the Council would be willing to provide any aid against this threat. They won't stop with Humanity."

"Well said, Commander Shepard," Bau nodded. "Councilors, I would like to add my own input. Regardless of the Reapers, aiding and legitimizing Shepard's mission will only be of benefit. Ending a threat before it grows bolder and stronger, preventing further loss of life. Reintroduce Human Spectre, calming Alliance from searching for new candidate. Show council races that Council cares for its citizens, no matter size of group."

"And what of his connection to Cerberus?" Valern questioned. "We cannot show Council support of that organization."

"Council aid of Shepard means less aid he requires from Cerberus. Further, until the 'truce' is terminated, can remain mostly silent on matter." The Council were mulling it over, and Hackett spoke up.

"Shepard, the report from your mother claimed that you would eventually be going through the Omega-4 relay, correct?"

"Yes, sir. Right now, all we've got is Cerberus' word that they're looking for a way to make the journey safe."

"If it is a matter of the relay itself, perhaps further study of the other relays might yield clues to whatever technology or programming make the relay so hostile," Valern theorized. "We could assign a science team."

"I still find the Commander's mind to be in question. Reapers, pfah."

"May I remind you, Sparatus, that Shepard saved not just your lives two years ago, but every life on the Citadel? And just recently stopped the Collectors from completing their abduction? Alenko can confirm that his memory is intact, I can already attest to the fact he's still the same man I knew two years ago."

"I agree, Anderson," Tevos responded. "In favor of reinstating Shepard's Spectre status?" Valern and Anderson both gave their support. "Let the record show the vote has passed, three to one." Sparatus grumbled. "Commander, we welcome you back into the fold of the Spectres. You will find yourself with the same benefits you once had. However, given the sensitive situation of your current allegiances, we do request you keep a low profile and to conduct as much of your business as you can within the Traverse and Terminus systems."

"I can agree to that. Thank you, Councilors. I'm not about to let Cerberus use me as a poster boy."

"We will also assign a Science team as Councilor Valern suggested, and will keep you posted on any developments. And while we cannot provide a permanent stream of credits for your mission, so long as we are all in agreement, we will keep you posted on missions the Council may require of you and will provide payment upon accomplishment. Payment equal to that of a Spectre's paycheck.

"Fine, make him work for his title back," Sparatus muttered as Valern and Anderson nodded in agreement of Tevos' addition.

"How frequently would you like updates?"

"Only after missions we assign or when you deem necessary. You will, for the most part, be operating outside of our fold," Valern answered.

"Are there any other matters to address?" Tevos began.

"Only some matters I wish to discuss with Admiral Hackett," I stated.

"Then seeing as the Council's business here has concluded, I call this meeting adjourned, and we shall take our leave. Good luck, Commander. And we hope for a swift end to your relationship with Cerberus."

"That makes two of us," I remarked. Aside from David, the Councilors stood from their seats and left, followed by Bau.

"Shepard?" Hackett raised his brow.

"I was hoping we could talk about my status with the Alliance. I'm aware my death might cause some issues there, and even more, considering my ship isn't technically Alliance either."

"Bureaucrats and bookkeepers won't like it, but I'd certainly approve of an immediate reinstatement into our ranks and official restoration of your rank. Something I'm sure will go far more smoothly with our Councilors support?"

"Which you will have, of course," David added.

"Thank you, sir."

"That being said, it'll probably help to pull the same move the Council did. Throw some odd jobs your way that we would question doing officially, or would lack the time to respond for. It might be that for a time, you'll technically be listed as a freelance," Hackett warned.

"I'll be happy so long as the Alliance will have me. I bleed blue, sir."

"I know you do. Now, before I go and start making the necessary calls, Commander Alenko's still on the Citadel. He thought he'd stay and see what happened."

"I'd like to arrange a meeting with him."

"I'll pass it along," Hackett nodded. "Good luck, Commander."


	21. The Thief, The Councilor, The Asshole

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Alright, because I'm not being a forgetful idiot this time, few quick things. First, hope you enjoyed the fun I had last chapter with the 'Commander Shepard XXX' stuff. And, for the record, no. The Femshep look alike I snuck in is not supposed to be the actual femshep who's life took a different turn. Just who her double would have been had she been the sperm that won and not John. Then of course the other shit there was meant to be stupid. Not like the porn industry to actually put creativity and effort into their shit. Moving on, later you'll see the name Amul mentioned. Followed by the Prime Minister title. Did research in the wiki to learn the name of the Alliance Prime Minister. Amul Shastri. There you go for that. Next I want to address a review from HS508. Really sorry I didn't get back on this sooner, but I also couldn't message you directly in response. You asked if I would make an Andromeda story? Bruh. Check my profile. Already completed an 81 chapter novelization of it. (But skip the first 12 chapters or so. Got better afterwards but when I first started out it was kinda trash.) Also want to apologize for not doing this more often. School and work is really keeping me busy. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

Well, that was easier than I expected. Spectre credentials and authorization had been uploaded to my Omni-tool, and while David didn't have time at the moment, he invited me to his office once the ship had transferred, suggesting I bring Garrus and Tali along. Meanwhile, I had returned to the Normandy as it was being transferred out of the C-sec docks to one on Zakera ward.

"You're not in cuffs and the ship's transferring. Guess you didn't do too bad, hm?" Garrus remarked as he and Tali were both meeting me on the other side of the airlock

"Seeing as they restored my Spectre status and the only request was that I spend more time in Terminus than here until the Cerberus truce is up, yeah I'd say it went pretty well."

"It'll help having that clearance," Garrus nodded.

"Did you see Anderson?" Tali asked.

"I did. I think having him and Hackett so adamantly on my side were a big help. It was… good, to see him again," I allowed a small smile. "He invited me up to his office once we were docked and extended that to both of you."

"He did? I don't recall we ever spoke with him that much," Garrus added.

"Maybe. But I spoke to him a lot about the crew," I shrugged. "Including you two. We'll dock, and I'll send Gardner grocery shopping, Jacob to look around for weapon supplies, Chakwas for medical."

"We plan to stay long?" Joker asked.

"Just the rest of the day. We still need to pick up the Justicar and the Assassin on Illium," I answered. "Here? Resupply, and the thief."

"Fun. Coming into dock now. And I'll be keeping an eye on my wallet," Joker responded. It was only a short time before docking was finished. I had already given the orders to Jacob, Gardner, and Chakwas, telling them that they have full liberties over their shopping lists. It's all on Cerberus' tab after all. And I urged Gardner to purchase higher end supplies, so Tali, Garrus, and I worked our way through the airlock. Ah, a civilian dock. That means customs. Suppose it's a part of trying to keep me a bit more on the quiet end of things. Along the walkway to the customs checkpoint were a total of six advertising holo-projectors, three on each side. All their displays were blank for the moment, waiting for our approach. But one appeared to have a glitch. It was flickering. As we approached, the first two lit up. One apparently had paid the bigger bucks, as it's sound drowned out the other. The logo AI behind a black background, a large, four-pronged space-ship above.

"A whole new galaxy of opportunity! Your physical condition makes you a perfect candidate for a trek across the stars. Join the Andromeda Initiative today! Time's running out!" the advertisement called out. Biometric readings, personalized advertisements. On one hand, those can always be a little weird. On the other? Sometimes their screw ups make for some good laughs. The next two included the glitched advertisement, while the others just completely shut off. There was a hooded figure on the display, less than half of the human face still visible. Light skin, small nose, thin lips, and a small purple mark connecting her chin to the middle of her bottom lip.

"Commander Shepard! Enter the password and receive a free prize!" the woman exclaimed on the advertisement, the image still flickering occasionally. Well, this must be her. I glanced over at customs, the clerk outside was clearly struggling to keep her focus solely on her console. Pretending not to see anything. I wonder if she's also responsible for us docking here rather than somewhere closer to the Presidium. And I can't help but wonder where she is currently. Nearby? Or a safe house somewhere on the station. For the former, I glanced around, not seeing anything standing out. Or anything hiding. Apparently, I had been taking some time. "We have the perfect companions for you. Maybe something small, petite, and Japanese is your style."

"Sorry, I don't have yellow fever," I joked. The woman smirked. "Silence is golden. Seems to me the password isn't quite necessary."

"Maybe. It's still fun for me though. Good to finally meet you, Commander Shepard. Kasumi Goto. I'm a fan."

"Oh? Enough to know my two friends."

"Aaaabsolutely. Garrus Vakarian, ex C-sec detective, and, Archangel. And Tali'Zorah, but I'm not sure what she is 'vas' of now."

"Impressive," Garrus remarked.

"So, you get briefed on the message?"

"Yep! Surprised they didn't come to see me sooner. My fault for being so hard to find."

"And what put you in contact with those asshats?"

"Bit of a story. Short one? They were looking for me, so I went behind their backs trailing them to find out why. Learned they wanted someone to join you on an important mission and were offering a serious signing bonus. So, I tapped them on the shoulders and waved hello. I have something I needed help with, so I made a deal. Here we are."

"And I take it this deal was in more than credits? They didn't give me details on it."

"Yeah, guess it slipped their minds," she remarked. "I'm looking for my old partner's gray-box. A man named Donovan Hock took it, and I'm planning to get it back."

"A gray-box? Rare technology," Tali mused. A cerebral implant that records memories, among other things. Plenty of secrets can be stored on those.

"I have one too," Kasumi's eyes lit up, a holographic display now in front of them like a visor, before vanishing. "Keji Okuda and I worked together for a long time. Before Hock… killed him," she went quiet.

"What did he do?"

"The best hacker and entry man I've ever known slipped up and made himself infamous. He stole something he shouldn't, warned me it was bad. Said it could spark war if it got out. He never told me what it was. He encrypted it in his own memories. To decode it, you'd have to sift through all of it. Now those memories are all that's left of him."

"I see. I'm sorry for your loss." Kasumi gave a small nod. "I've heard of Hock's name before. Scumbag hiding behind front industries, right?"

"Got it in one. Arms dealer, murderer, kind of a bad guy. His mansion is famous for being hard to crack. But I have a way in, and I think you're going to love it."

"Color me intrigued. Share any details here?"

"Sorry, can't do that. Besides, I need to nail down a few more details anyway. Don't worry, I'll make sure you're completely prepared when the time comes," she reassured.

"We'll get it done, then."

"Excellent," she smiled. "It'll be fun. And if you're lucky, you won't even have to draw your gun."

"Aw, where's the fun in that?" Garrus remarked. The advertisement turned off and descended into its slot in the ground.

"Catch!" a voice from the rafters above called out. A duffel bag was heading right for my face, and I caught it, barely. Setting it down as I saw Kasumi, in a black and grey hooded suit, picking up another bag to throw. This one, aimed at Garrus. The Turian having more warning to catch. "Thanks. I thought we should wrap this up. You looked silly standing there talking to an advertisement." She then jumped down, knees only bending slightly as she stood up. "Hello there."

"General Kenobi." Kasumi then sputtered with laughter. While the two non-humans had no idea what I was talking about.

"Another strange human thing?" Garrus asked.

"And an old one," Kasumi added, and picked up the duffel bags. "See you on the ship, Shep."

"See you aboard, Kasumi." I got onto the ship comms. "EDI, be sure to let her in."

"Of course, Shepard."

"She's a character," Garrus remarked.

"Seems like she'll be fun. Come on, through customs, grab a cab." The clerk outside let us pass into the checkpoint itself. A relatively wide hallway with glass panes that we couldn't see through, but not doubt had armed C-sec guards watching on the other side. At the end of the hall, a Turian working at a console, watching us.

"Initiating security scan." It began at the back of the group. Passing over Tali and Garrus without issue. But me? It locked on, a small alarm triggering. There was a confused look on the Turian as he read over the console three times. He got commed. "What? Do you seriously think… yeah, ok." He looked back up. "Sorry for the inconvenience, sir. Our scanners are picking up false readings. Records seem to think you're… ah… dead."

"Well, I was… listed MIA for a few years." I noticed a surge of… discomfort on Tali.

"I see. Would you mind checking in with my Captain? He can reinstate you." Hm, guess they've been a little slow with that themselves. Or maybe it was deliberate. "Just past the scanners, on the right." The door on the other side opened. There was a gruff human voice speaking into his terminal behind a large desk. Captain Bailey, the nametag on it read. He was nearly bald with blonde hair, light skin, and both scars and wrinkles.

"You'll have to make him scream a little. He's not going to tell you everything just 'cause you ask," he grumbled, keeping it a bit quieter so passer-bys outside the checkpoint wouldn't hear. But I could. I tossed Garrus a glance. He shrugged. He hadn't been around for a while after all.

"I… I know, sir," A woman's voice responded. Human. "If you don't have the stomach, or you're worried about being reported, I can take care of it," he lightened his tone.

"No, sir! I can handle it," the woman affirmed. Lying to herself most likely.

"Offer stands." he ended the call and looked up, hands clasped on his desk. "Garrus. Been a while."

"Long time no see, Bailey."

"I know why you're here, and I already see the problem. My console here says that Commander Shepard, you," he looked at me, "is dead. Obviously, my console is wrong."

"Not concerned I'm some imposter?" Bailey leaned back.

"Not with our scanners. They can sample DNA from skin flakes. You had unregistered gene mods, they can figure those out too. Facial reconstruction is child's play. Now, usually, you'd have to go through Station Security Administration to reactivate your IDs. Then to customs and immigration to regain access to the Citadel itself. And probably a stop by the treasury. Spending two years dead is a popular tax dodge, believe it or not." I sighed.

"And I already saw the Council and got my Spectre status back."

"Good for you. Even if you hadn't, I'd be making this offer. Now, screw it, I'll just do it. I press this button right here, and it's done."

"That would absolutely be appreciated."

"You've never been one for formalities, have you, Bailey?" Garrus remarked.

"They're fine and dandy right until they keep people from doing their damn jobs. Not everything needs bureaucracy or a committee vote. Well, I won't keep you. You're a busy man. See you around, Garrus."

"Later, Bailey." We made our way towards the cabs.

"Sounds like C-Sec changed," I mused.

"Yeah. I know I wasn't the only one who was disgruntled, but I'll admit some surprise at the growing… openness."

"I'm just surprised they didn't seem to notice me," Tali added. There wasn't much to comment atop of that, so we just continued to the cab parking zone, and typed onto one of the available consoles our destination. The lights of one of the sky cabs turned on and the terminal directed us to it. Our driver was a Volus, Denes Bornera. Garrus and Tali got in the back, myself in the front passenger.

"Oh! Such variety!" The Volus breathed a more feminine voice. "What are you all going to the Presidium for?" The cab began to rise into the sky car lanes.

"Meeting up with an old friend," I answered.

"At the embassies? Seems like a strange place to meet up," she responded, the signature heavy breathing still breaking apart the sentence.

"He doesn't have time to leave his office, but enough to multitask some social time."

"Oh, friends in high places? My sister met Din Korlack once at a party, but that's as close as I've ever gotten. Who's your friend?" she asked. I glanced back at the others and smirked.

"David Anderson."

"T-The Councilor?" she took a deep breath. "My, that is high up." She paused, taking another breath. "What's your names?"

"Garrus Vakarian," Garrus answered first. I gestured for Tali next.

"Tali'Zorah vas Neema." No recognition yet. I know the Council said to keep this quiet, but… who's going to believe her, and it's just fun.

"John Shepard." She sputtered, glancing between me and the skycar lane as we entered the presidium.

"I-I thought… I just shouldn't ask, should I?" I just shrugged, and the rest of the ride was in silence. We landed, I paid, she sped away. We walked through the Human embassies, a few glances shot our way. I wouldn't be surprised if a few found me familiar but couldn't place it. Anderson's office was now two levels above the level above where Udina's used to be. The Human embassy had expanded, now that we had a Council seat. In fact, the third floor was entirely dedicated to the Councilor and his duties. Outside the entrance to his office was a receptionist. A smaller woman with short black hair, and darker skin.

"Commander Shepard? The Councilor told me to expect you. Go right in," she stated, the door opening, showing Anderson sitting at his desk, working at a terminal. He smiled seeing us but held up a finger.

"Yes, Amul. I'll be sure to bring that up at the next meeting. I'll keep you posted on the results." He paused a moment. "Thank you. Goodbye, Prime Minister." He ended the call. "Great to see you all. Come on, let's move to the lounge." David stood from his seat and led us to a door near the back of the office. It's like a smaller version of the American White House. In space. There was a bar manned by an older man dressed like a butler, a den with a large TV and sofas, at least in this room.

"Would the sirs and the madam like anything to drink?" the butler asked.

"You've got the pick of the litter. If I have it, you can take some," Anderson reinforced.

"Share a bourbon?" I suggested. Anderson nodded in agreement.

"And I'll have a brandy," Garrus added.

"Please, just some water," Tali made her request. We all took our seats on the sofas, and it wasn't lost on anyone that Tali and I sat beside one another. Garrus was again, chuckling, shaking his head. Anderson, a raised brow and a smirk. Just a moment later, the butler came over with a tray with glasses, filtered water, and large ornate bottles holding Turian Brandy, and Human bourbon.

"Thank you, Elliot," Anderson stated as the drinks were being poured for us. "And thank you for giving him a chance to work. Apparently my new… recreational space and Elliot came with the job. You know how I am, John. A butler is one of the last things I want, let alone need. But I can't very well let him go, and he's still a big help. I'd never be able to keep this place clean otherwise. Too busy."

"Brings to mind. What happened to your old apartment? Is this home now?" I asked.

"God, no," Anderson chuckled. "I'd go stir crazy in half a week. Somedays I have no choice but to pass out here, but when I can, I go back to my own. Especially when, well…" Anderson smirked and looked down.

"David," I leaned forward. "Come on, spill."

"You first," he gestured between Tali and I. Tali awkwardly scrunched herself up, legs together, shoulders pressed inwards, wringing her hands in her lap. Meanwhile, I leaned back, and wrapped my arm around her shoulders, rubbing the side of hers to reassure her. She began to relax.

"Yep."

"Good for both of you, really," Anderson smiled. "Now, my turn. John, you remember my story about when Saren sabotaged my shot as Spectre?" I nodded. "There was a woman I met on that mission, Kahlee Sanders. We were close, and tried for a few years, but, we both were too dedicated to our jobs. After… you know, she came to me for help I couldn't provide. But I led her in a different direction. One that led her to Omega. Cerberus captured her and her companions while there, but were saved, and the three of them were brought onto the Idenna."

"Wait, your friend was on the Idenna? You know the people Cerberus hunted to our fleet?" Tali questioned.

"Yes, but I only learned that much of the story after Kahlee left and came back. But the reason I'm bringing this back up? I knew John had feelings for you, Tali, back during the campaign for Saren. Knowing that… that, happened before he could tell you? Well, I didn't want to make the same mistake. And we're making it work." I just ignored the parts hinting towards my death, as we, of course, wanted to keep the mood more positive."

"That's good to hear, David. Very good to hear. When will I get to meet her?"

"Give me some warning next time you're heading to the Citadel, I'll see if she, and myself, can take some time," he answered. "So, what about you two?" Anderson gestured at Garrus and Tali. "What have you been up to since Saren?" Garrus went first.

"Went back to C-Sec for a while, but everything that bothered me back then got worse. Not to mention I didn't exactly feel like anything I did made a real difference. So, I took a few pages from Shepard's book. I went someone that needed the help, that place being Omega, and found people who wanted things to change. We challenged the mercs there, clean. Now there, we were starting to make a difference."

"You planning to rejoin them after this mission?" Anderson asked, innocently. Garrus, however, just looked down. I subtly shook my head to the side in Anderson's view. He nodded, my gesture telling him all he needed to know. "Tali?"

"I went back to the Fleet, of course. I work with our Marines frequently given my combat experience. Sometimes leading small teams, others, leading a science team and coordinating with the Marine escort. I had to complete one such mission before I could join…" Tali paused and glanced at me. Ah, she's not sure whether to use my first or last name here. I grinned and nodded with a small wave of my hand. "John." Garrus chuckled, Anderson grinned, withholding his own.

"Using his first name. Damn, this is serious," Garrus joked, taking a swig of his drink. "You two, how did Joker put it? Suck face yet?"

"W-what? What does that even?! No!" Tali exclaimed.

"C-mon, let her be, Garrus. We're both still settling into this," I rubbed Tali's shoulder again.

"Alright, alright. I'll let up. For now. But don't think for a second I'll get right back at it as soon as you two are comfortable," he warned.

"I think that's all I can ask for," I chuckled.

"Damn right it is. What kind of best friends don't constantly give each other shit?"

"Ha! And I just didn't want to be the one to say it first!" I laughed. Anderson and Garrus both chuckled while Tali just calmed back down. "Yeah, you're my brother, Garrus. Thus, I extend the offer of the first name, to you," I took a swig of my own drink.

"Maybe I'll take you up on that," Garrus shrugged. "Right now, Shepard just feels right." The door to the lounge burst open, revealing a face I was rather displeased to see.

"Anderson! We need to talk about-" his eyes locked onto me, glaring. The entire mood soured. "Shepard," he frowned. "What are you doing here?"

"I knew you were a backstabbing, slimy, prick, but when did you go blind? Or just plain stupid? Having a drink with an old friend," I responded.

"I invited him here, Udina," Anderson added.

"Before meeting with the Council? If I received word he docked, then they-"

"Already did." I cut him off. "Sorry for not stopping by to say hello. I've just got a long list of people who can fuck off. Right now? You're tied for first."

"The feeling is mutual, believe me," Udina growled. "Your return is a bureaucratic nightmare for us."

"Yeah? Call it even. Bureaucracy got my ship grounded right before the Geth attack," I countered. He just growled and shook his head. "And, Councilor, you already met? Do the words political shit-storm mean anything to you?!" he exclaimed.

"I make the decisions here, Udina. Your job is to clean up the mess I leave behind. Understand?" Anderson retorted. Udina glared daggers, still bitter. "Besides. It went fine. Shepard explained what happened and what his current mission his. His relationship with Cerberus is little more than a temporary truce. The Council took a vote and reinstated him as a Spectre. Hackett is working on his Alliance reinstatement."

"Just like that?" he wasn't quite believing it.

"They ask that he try and keep his business to the terminus, and himself down low," Anderson added.

"I… see. Yes, I can see how this works for both sides," he mused, the political and filthy cogs turning in his grubby little head. "But you really shouldn't have taken a step like this without consulting with me first, Councilor."

"Humanity's Councilor does not answer to his advisor, Udina. Why don't you go to your office and think on that for a while?" Anderson's brow furrowed.

"Of course… Councilor," he feigned manners and left. The door closed behind him.

"Ugh, I want to vomit just from the sound of his damn voice," I groaned.

"Sorry about that," David leaned back in his seat. "Udina never got over the fact I got the position instead of him. I still need to put him in his place time to time."

"What do you even keep him around for?" Garrus asked. "Surely the Alliance has other diplomats that could advise you just as well."

"I admit, I tried approaching Anita Goyle for advising, but she's not eager to leave her retirement. Besides, she argued some of the past events she was Ambassador for might muddle my image to the Council," David explained. "As for taking someone else? No one else in Parliament knows the Citadel like he does. If you want something done here, he knows who can make it happen. Plus, he's always happy to trot off to formal diplomatic bullshit I could never be bothered with. I tried at first, but it's just excruciating."

"What kind of progress have you made for the Alliance? Least, from things I remember you trying for."

"Like Farixen? Putting us in the same space as the Asari and Salarians in it was easy and seamless. As for matching the Turians, they're considering approving a… trial run, you could call it."

"I'm sure the Alliance is very happy about that."

"Quite. All the more to ward off the Batarians from ever trying anything major."

"Speaking of them. How many Batarian diplomats stormed the Citadel, kicking and screaming when you took your seat?" Garrus asked.

"More than a few," David chuckled. "But they were quickly reminded that they gave up their say in Council space. They border less and less unclaimed space every month."

"Hm, serves the Hegemony right," I took another swig.

"So, what about your new crew?" David asked.

"A lot more interesting than the original's, I can tell you that much," Garrus remarked.

"Putting it lightly," I chuckled.

"And less friendly," Tali added. David rose a concerned brow.

"That'll be Miranda and Jack I'd bet she's talking about," I explained. Tali nodded. "Might as well get them out of the way first. Miranda Lawson, Cerberus operative. Ran the show of my resurrection. She's cold and professional, loyal as hell to Cerberus. From what little she's told me, it's because of a near lifetime of… let's call it favors. Or debts. Crazy ass father breeding her in a test tube, viewing her as an object. She ran off to Cerberus and found a place there. I'm still not sure just how much she knows about Cerberus' actions, and just how much she does know, and genuinely doesn't. Then, what she does know about, and genuinely finds acceptable," I explained. "Jack? A woman, actually. Damn powerful biotic too. Thing was, she was a prisoner on purgatory."

"Let me guess. You were there when it blew up," Anderson smirked.

"Well… maybe…" David began laughing. "Hey, I swear it wasn't my fault. Not this time," I started. Garrus was chuckling, and I swear I heard an ever so slight giggle from Tali. "Look, it could have gone so easy. Cerberus had already made a deal with the Blue Suns for her exchange. They got greedy and tried to nab the rest of us too. Forced us to free Jack in a not-so-relaxed manner. Soon as she was free of her cryo cell, she just went into a rage. Legitimately cashed through not one, not two, but three YMIR mechs. Followed her through a set of holes in the prison, and the whole place was somehow on fire. No clue how."

"If anyone else was telling me that story, I'd have a very hard time believing it. But you?" David chuckled and poured himself some more bourbon.

"Yeah, crazy life of Shepard, right? Anyways. Jack doesn't trust anyone or anything. Not sure why yet, but she _really_ hates Cerberus. But she's keeping to herself for now. But, still aggressive. Moving on. Jacob Taylor, Cerberus Op but was always on the fence. My little story brought him off that fence to our side of the field. Next would be Zaeed Massani. I know you've already heard of him. Then, Grunt. Tank bred-Krogan. Grown to adulthood and educated in the tank, but only got out of it a little over a week ago. Not really sure what to make of him yet. He just likes a fight."

"Hm." David smirked, and raised his glass. "Here's to another motley crew."


	22. Not So Secret

**Commander John Shepard**

As Anderson eventually had to get back to work, Tali, Garrus, and I returned to Zakera ward near where the ship had docked. We still had some time before it was late, and we'd all be better off just sleeping until the departure for Illium tomorrow, so we thought we'd just look around a bit. But Anderson had given a few more interesting tid-bits. And concerning, in some cases. What wasn't concerning is that there are still the occasional Geth holdout still found, but that they're cleared out without serious casualties. The cleanup has been going that way for months. Moving on, full restoration of the Citadel should be done in about five years, and the Keepers, despite their… origins, are the largest help. And what's concerning, is that what's left of Sovereign? Less than half is officially accounted for. The rest, scattered to the winds of scavengers, and probably Keeper removal.

Our cab, being driven by a Turian man, was much less talkative than the Volus woman. It came to a stop at the same cab bay that we caught our first ride in, and just outside? Another face I was hoping not to see. I guess Denes talked, and someone listened. Khalisa… something something al-Jilani. I'm sure she's about to remind me of the rest. Camera drone by her side. I sighed as the cab set down and we had to get out.

"Commander Shepard! Commander Shepard!" she called out. Ugh, why couldn't it have been Emily Wong? "Khalisah bint Sinan al-Jilani, Westerlund News." Yep, there we go, the rest of her name. She held out her hand, I just raised a brow and did not accept. She slowly brought her hand back to her side. "I interviewed you two years ago, when you first became a Spectre?" she tried to remind me.

"I remember. And I remember you tried to make me look bad. Both then, and future questions you tried to ask me."

"I'm sorry you took it that way," she began. Key part. Sorry that I perceived it in such a way. Not sorry that it was a way deserving of such perception. "You presented your case very well on camera. Do you have a minute?"

"Fine, let's see if you can get the better of me this time." Having a moment for an interview or not won't mean that word does or doesn't get out about me. Not accepting just means she can write a story and then include I refused an interview, bringing forth all kinds of unsavory speculation. I turned to Garrus and Tali. "Sorry, this should only be a minute or so."

"Have fun," Garrus chuckled.

"Yeah, up yours, buddy."

Garrus just chuckled more. Khalisa brought the camera on, the flashing red light showing it was recording, and the drone lit my face up in how I suppose would be preferable.

"Testing, testing, one, two, three," she spoke, her words obviously picked up by the com-piece she was wearing, somewhere. She listened close, then held up a data pad, likely having questions. "Commander, sources say you were at the heart of the Presidium during the Battle of the Citadel. It's fair to say that the outcome was determined by your words and actions. If true, you told Admiral Hackett to assist the Destiny Ascension, costing hundreds of Human lives and securing the continued dominance of the Citadel Council." Oh for fucks sake.

"So, I see you're not only wasting time in disrespecting the dead, but not wasting any time getting right into the bullshit either. Let me start answering your question with a question of my own. Do you know how many ships the other races lost? The Turians lost twenty cruisers. Twenty. Each would have had a crew of around three-hundred. That's six thousand dead right there. The Ascension had a crew of nearly ten-thousand. That's ten-thousand lives the Alliance saved from that one ship alone."

"But surely the Human cost-"

"Was far less in numbers. The Alliance lost eight cruisers. Shenyang, Emden, Jakarta, Cairo, Seoul, Cape Town, Warsaw, Madrid. Yeah, I remember them all. Everyone in the Fifth Fleet is a hero. Every last one. The Alliance owes all of them medals, and the Council owes them their lives. And so do you," I shook my head to the side and stormed off, Garrus and Tali both following along.

"Great," Khalisah murmured. "Bull-rushed on my own show."

"That was… fun, to watch," Tali remarked.

"Bet Westerlund just hates me. Sucks for them that I'm too high profile to just ignore," I shrugged, calming down. We walked by an advertisement, and an Asari face, and, normally, I'd have just kept walking. But this?

"Shepard, you've recently been dead."

I burst into laughter. How the hell do these advertisements have the programming to go about that? How is it not blaring with a massive 'error' message and going up in smoke trying to piece that together.

"Hold on, hold on, I need to see how screwy this gets." It was helped that Garrus was also getting a kick out of the ad, but I noticed Tali was left a bit uncomfortable with that reminder. The ad just went on to talk about Asari burial robes. But the ending line was a bit… eh.

"Anatass. We'll help you leave a good looking corpse."

"Hey, sorry, Tali. Just, a laugh helps me with it." Tali sighed.

"I understand. There's just… a lot of bad memories, for me."

"Talk more about it later?" I suggested. Tali nodded. I put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed, giving a reassuring grin. As we began to pass again, the advertisement came back, but for a different company. Same Asari, oddly enough.

"Mr. Shepard, a man as ruggedly handsome as you deserves the finest in biotic technology,"

"Wait, it shouldn't even have records of me as a biotic. Is it detecting the implant?" I questioned.

"The next time you're out on the town with Miss Zorah…" Tali nearly jumped in surprise, her eyes going wide. Garrus was laughing his ass off, not far from crying, I'd suspect. I just smiled at Tali again, struggling not to chuckle. "The new Sophist biotic amplifier from the Serrice Council is the perfect accessory. Power. Precision. Elegance. It's not just an amplifier, it's an expression of your masculinity. Sophist."

"Ok, these ads are weird as all hell."

"Putting it lightly! How would it even know?!"

"I-" Garrus cut himself off with laughter. "I think it, heh, I think it's just assuming that whenever a man and-" he laughed again. "A man and a woman are walking together, that they're together." The gears in my head began to turn.

"I want to see about toying with this sometime. See how it reacts and how it prioritizes the people in the group. Could be fun."

"I'm in," Garrus stated.

"I… suppose," Tali added. Considering. I looked at a small directory. This level had a gift shop, and the one above, Rodam Expeditions, and they sell weapons. There's also a lounge at the same level. Below us, Sirta has a store, there's a food stand, and a tech store. A few levels below that, a restaurant I suppose we could give a shot. Not too fancy, good enough for a casual, late lunch. A quick Omni-tool search verified that they served Quarians.

"Either of you hungry? Got a restaurant a few floors down. It'll serve the three of us," I suggested.

"Sure, I could go for a bite," Garrus shrugged.

"I don't have any credits," Tali warned.

"So? Meal's on Cerberus," I remarked.

"You make a good point," Tali smirked under the visor.

"Speaking of credits, I really need to see Barla Von again sometime. I don't exactly have any credits of my own anymore," I murmured.

"I wouldn't worry about that. I heard he's got a policy with Spectres. Body or no, he gives Spectre's a grace period of five years when declared de-" Garrus glanced at Tali, remembering her discomfort with that word earlier. "Missing, where he treats their accounts as normal."

"Huh. I wonder what that means for Saren's account. Or Nihlus'. I certainly won't complain about his skepticism."

"Gonna go see him tonight?" Garrus asked as we were making our way down towards the restaurant. Curiously, no elevators to be seen, but a few sets of stairs. I doubt it's accidental that they only go down one level, then you need to pass by all the stores on that floor to get to the next set.

"No, next time we're back on the station though. If the grace period is five years, another week or so won't make much difference," I shrugged.

"Fair enough," Garrus shrugged. We were making our way down the first staircase now. Garrus chuckled to himself. "You know something I miss about the old days here? The elevators."

"What? Why?" Tali questioned. "They were always so slow."

"Think about it, Tali. It was a great time for us all to get to know one another…" Oh, that's where he's going. I snickered.

"Yeah! Remember how we'd ask you about life on the Fleet? It was an opportunity to share," I teased. Tali's eyes narrowed.

"This conversation is over."

"Tell me again about your immune system," Garrus pushed.

"I have a shotgun," Tali reminded.

"Hm, maybe later then," Garrus hummed. Starting to chuckle. As did I.

"And why are you joining this, Shepard?" She questioned.

"Ooh, last name. Bad sign," Garrus remarked.

"Alright, alright," I struggled to hide the smirk. "Sorry Tali," I stretched my left arm out, inviting her closer. She took a breath, and came up to my side. She leaned her head against my shoulder for a moment as my hand rested on her hip.

"Ok." she then removed herself, earning a concerned glance from me. "John, the news is already learning you're… back. Let's not give them too much to talk about."

"You know I don't care if they talk, right?"

"I-thank you, but… it is early." I can understand that sentiment, but… something about the way she said that. The reason she gave was more of a cover, I think. But I won't push it. Not right now. We came to the base of the stairs and into the next commercial area. I could smell food being cooked, a small Japanese food… stand? In the right corner just beside the stairs exit.

"This clanless is a thief! Arrest her!" A Volus wheezed somewhere a head. Clanless? Wait, they call us Earth-clan, Turians, Palaven-clan, so on, so forth. Clanless? That narrows it down. Sure enough, up ahead I saw a human C-Sec officer with his arms crossed in front of a shocked Quarian woman in a pilgrim's suit. Much like Tali's old suit, but without the medical brace she had at first on her right arm.

"Wha-What?! I was just walking by!" she exclaimed. Well, time to get involved. Garrus didn't crack a joke, not at this, and Tali was of course dead set on seeing for herself anyway. The officer saw me walking up, with two in tow.

"I'm sorry sir, I'm trying to take a statement here," he began, sounding more annoyed than anything else.

"There's nothing to talk about! She stole my credit chit. Arrest her!" The Volus demanded.

"I did not! Just because I'm a Quarian-" she shouted, greatly insulted. Her cloth was green in color with wavy patterns on it.

"Sir," the man looked down at the Volus, gesturing for him to relax. "I need you to stop a moment and take a deep breath." He immediately regretted his words, wincing.

"You're mocking-" he breathed. "me, Earth-clan! Just because the Vol-clan need-"

"It was a poor choice of words, sir. I apologize. Now, I need to scan you for the credit-chit," the officer stated, facing the Quarian.

"Fine. You won't find anything." The officer opened his Omni-tool and ran his scan.

"I'm not detecting the missing credit chit, but that doesn't confirm that it wasn't stashed."

"In less than five minutes?" the Quarian exclaimed.

"I know what Quarians are like. And you're definitely a vagrant. I'll-"

"Oh for fucks sake," I shouted at the officer. "Fucking really? You know Humanity already went through this same shit in the nineteen hundreds, right?"

"She's not a vagrant, she's on pilgrimage!" Tali added, angrily. "It's a tradition in which-"

"I don't give a damn about your traditions. Each time one of you shows up here, it's trouble."

"I'll call some bullshit on that," I grumbled. Garrus stepped up.

"Volus, where did you lose your credit chit?" Garrus questioned.

"And just who are you?"

"I was a C-sec investigator until I quit because I hated what it was becoming. Are you going to answer or not?" The Volus huffed.

"It was when I left the Sirta Foundation store, she ran right into me. I checked for my chit, and it was gone. And I know I didn't leave it at Sirta, because I didn't buy anything."

"And you don't consider how she can't even reach your pockets without very conspicuously bending down?" Garrus added.

"These clanless are all thieves, they have their methods. You can't turn your backs on them."

"My people are only forced to steal to survive when Bosh'tets like you don't let them have real jobs," Tali growled.

"And to think my taxes pay to support you here. Go back to your fleet."

"I am of Clan Zorah. Crew of the starship Neema, and you are an idiot."

"Come on, don't let this arrogant prick get the better of you. I bet he was crying in a corner when the Geth attacked. And you know where you were."

"How dare you!" the Volus exclaimed, but we didn't listen.

"My brain agrees with you. But everything else tells me that I should jack his olfactory filters, and make everything smell like the shit of an old and sick Krogan that ate a Turian."

"Remind me not to get on your bad side," Garrus remarked. "Now, did you enter a store before Sirta? Make any purchases?" The Volus took an angry breath.

"Saronis Applications, but I put the chit back, I would never make such a stupid mistake."

"I think it would be wise to check anyway. Now, Ms.…?"

"You ask for her name but not mine?!"

"For someone so small and round, you really think you're high and mighty, don't you? Now…"

"Lia. Lia'Vael nar Shellen."

"Now, Lia, what do you remember having happened?"

"I was walking to the used ship dealer when he barged into me outside the Sirta Foundation. He didn't stop or say he was sorry. Moments later, he runs up with C-sec, and accuses me of stealing his damn chit."

"Spend a lot of time there?" Garrus asked.

"Yeah. They have a lot of nice models. I'd like to buy one of their ships someday and take it back to the Fleet but…" she looked down.

"Your pilgrimage isn't going well, is it, Lia?" Tali asked.

"No, I… I came here thinking there'd be a lot of work. EVA, salvage. Fixing all the damage from the Geth attack. But everywhere I go has a sign saying, 'not hiring Quarians,' while the people around give me those looks.

"I'll go ask at Saronis. Garrus, stay here, would you?" He nodded, and I took Tali with me. "I'd bet a fortune that Lia didn't do it. That Volus is way too puffed up about it. If Saronis doesn't have it, I'll bail her out with my Spectre status if I have to."

"Thank you, John. This happens far too often."

"Yeah, yeah I know," I murmured. "If she has any skills that could help on the ship, I'm giving her the offer." Tali brushed her hand against mine, smiling behind her visor with a glance at me. There it is, Saronis Applications, a Salarian clerk running the shop. Darker skin, and wearing a relatively formal black shirt with a name tag. Marab. As we crossed the store's threshold, there was a chime.

"Welcome to Saronis Applications," he began to greet, a friendly tone. "Can I interest you-" his eyes went wide. "Ah! Shepard!" That was more of a personal greeting. Do I know him?

"I'm sorry, I don't remember you…"

"Oh, that's because we haven't met. Even a senile Hanar would remember who you are! I thought you were dead!" That word really is getting thrown around a lot.

"I got better," I shrugged, letting him take it as a joke.

"Please, look around the store. It's a pleasure to have you here." Despite the fact I was here for a different purpose, I did glance what he had. Hm, good stock. Ship could probably use some of what he has. And the more special offers that aren't on display here. Software programs are good ones, high level. Reliable and then some.

"You know I do use quite a bit of software in my line of work."

"Shepard-" Tali began.

"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten. I'll ask, but this may be good for the ship," I reassured.

"I'll be happy to help with whatever it is that you need. As for software, I can imagine. Saronis gets quite a few military contracts. It's a shame so few understand their own equipment, besides the most obvious 'point and go' nav interfaces."

"And you wouldn't believe how often I hear 'why's the ship turning around? We're only halfway there!" Of course I never hear that. Everyone on any ship I serve on is well aware of that little, almost comical, necessity of FTL travel. The second half of the trip requires the ship to turn around and apply thrust away from its destination, so it can safely begin slowing down, instead of just collapsing the Mass Effect field allowing us to enter FTL. That would just kill everyone aboard. Marab got a good laugh out of that. "I like your products. Any interest in an endorsement from the Human who defeated Saren?" his eyes went wide again.

"I'd be thrilled! But… I don't think I could afford to pay you for it."

"How about extending a discount to me and those making purchases for my ship?"

"Done. That is absolutely something I can do. Now, just a moment," he typed at a console and a display lit up on my side. "Speak here." I cleared my throat and leaned in. Something simple should do.

"I'm Commander Shepard, and this is my favorite tech store on the Citadel." Now that will leave up other endorsements possible. Like, say on any gun stores? Marab was beaming.

"That will be splendid! I'll edit it and have it working right away! Thank you so much!"

"Anytime. Now, I did actually come here for a little investigation. Was there a Volus who came in here earlier? He's missing his Credit Chit."

"Oh yes, he did. He bought some environmental system drivers, then left without his chit. I didn't notice he'd left it until he was already gone," Marab shrugged.

"Not only do I thank you, but so does the Quarian girl he's accusing of picking his pocket. We'll go let him know, and I'll send over my Armory chief to see about some upgrades."

"Shame about the girl. But I'll be waiting for your Armory, Chief. Can I get a name?"

"Jacob Taylor."

"Thanks. Have a good day!" he cheerfully ended.

"So much for the Council wanting you to stay quiet."

"Hey, Khalisah already saw me, might as well make the news about me good, right?"

"I suppose. I'm just glad we found that chit."

"Depending on how he reacts, I might encourage you to jack his systems. If I do, please try not to listen to me." Tali giggled in response. "No promises." We returned to the 'scene,' finding the Volus ranting again. The C-sec officer failing to quiet him.

"Hey! Itty bitty bitchy! Shut up already. You left your credit-chit at Saronis applications. The clerk's holding it."

The Volus froze.

"Finally, I thought nothing would shut his mouth," Garrus grumbled.

"Oh… well… The Quarian could have stolen it."

"And I could beat you to a bloody pulp and tear off your helmet, but I won't. Should I be arrested for that? You know what? Fuck it, Tali, do it."

"After that comment? Absolutely," Tali growled, opening her Omni-tool.

"What are you-no, stop! Zada Ban curse you," the Volus sputtered.

"I'm closing this event report, but I'll be watching you. Get a permanent residence or I'll run you in for vagrancy," Lia was putting a hand to her forehead, stressing, I'm sure. And I'm sure the officer was about to turn to us, probably about to make some claim because I'm certain that this hack was technically illegal. But I'm pissed off. And appalled by this officer.

"Are you fucking serious?" I exclaimed. We were drawing the attention of the rest of the crowd. I stared down at the Volus first. "You falsely accuse this girl of stealing from you based on nothing more than her race, and now all you have to say is that she could have stolen it?" I kicked the bastard, enough to roll him onto his ass, rather than real damage. He still cried out. I then grabbed the cop by the collar. "And you? You're supposed to protect and serve, but let this girl get harassed and insulted, only to throw in a threat to arrest her for vagrancy? You're just a piece of shit thug with a badge!"

"And how about I run you in for obstruction of justice? Or assaulting an officer?" he threatened, angry. But it didn't match mine. I let out a low, quiet laugh.

"You think you're just going to run in a Spectre?" I glared daggers at him, an angry grin to help him piss himself. That had an effect. I shoved him away, and he began walking backwards, nervous. "Get out of here." The Volus turned and just began hobbling away, the officer, trying to maintain his dignity. Lia was shocked.

"Th-Thank you. I… wish I could give you something more than words."

"It's help freely given, don't worry. You wouldn't be the first pilgrim I've helped out. Take Tali here," I gestured.

"Wait, Tali, of clan Zorah? Now it's all making sense! Your Tali'Zorah vas Neema, and you're Commander Shepard!"

"One and only. You going to be alright?"

"Oh, uh, I guess. I can get nutrient paste in a Turian shelter. Thank you."

"What did you do on the Migrant Fleet? If you were willing to do Salvage, engineering?"

"No, actually. I just know how to work salvage as part of pilgrimage training. We all have the environment suits after all. I've actually spent most of my education studying in medicine and biology."

"Really? Well, I've got an offer for you then. On my ship, I've got a doctor trained with the medicine for all civilized species, and I've also got a brilliant Salarian Geneticist, among other labels I'm sure you could give him, by the name of Mordin Solus. I'm sure-"

"You have _THE_ Mordin Solus on your ship?! Keelah! I loved watching his 'Science Fun Today' show when I was little!"

"Wait, Mordin had a kids show?" Garrus chuckled. "Spirits, that makes me concerned."

"I honestly had no idea he had that show. Well, I'm offering you a place on my ship. As an assistant to my doctor, or as I think to be more likely, Mordin."

"I'd love to!" she squealed.

"Wait, hold on, please, Lia. I do need to warn you of a few things," I cautioned. "Tali and another Pilgrim who accepted a similar offer I ensured would be aware of the… situation aboard. Tali? Do you want to explain?" She nodded.

"Lia, first, I must vouch for Shepard's character. But unfortunately, extreme circumstances have forced him to temporarily cooperate with an organization despised both by him, and the Migrant Fleet. Cerberus."

"Oh… what… what kind of cooperation is this?"

"They provided him with a ship, intel, dossiers on specialists he would need to recruit, and the ship's crew. For what it's worth, I can attest that most crewmembers are largely ignorant of what Cerberus truly is. I have been treated well."

"And so have I. Haven't had any Shanxi hatred directed at me," Garrus added.

"I guess… that's not so bad," Lia murmured.

"That's not as bad as it gets. Cerberus installed a heavily shackled, but still…" Tali paused. "Here, can I key into your comms?" Lia nodded, and both their Omni-tools lit up. Now any eavesdroppers wouldn't hear the really sensitive part. "They installed an AI into the ship. I've been able to ignore it so far."

"Well… what kind of work has Professor Solus been doing?"

"A lot. I'm honestly not quite sure what half of it has been. But a good measure has been related to our current mission against the Collectors, countering their bioweapons."

"Collector bioweapons? I'm… uh…"

"It's ok, Lia. It's not a decision you'll need to make right now. To offset some of those negatives. You'll receive the same payment as the rest of the crew, a bed, meals, whole nine yards," I added. "We are heading out early tomorrow, but if you're not sure by then, the offer will stand next time we come to the Citadel."

"And how long will that be?"

"Honestly? Not quite sure. Only the next few days are scheduled in any amount. What follows depends. Go to wherever you're staying for the night, think on it. Here's my contact info," I opened my Omni-tool and transferred the information.

"Thank you, Commander Shepard."

"Anytime. Good luck, Lia," I smiled. We went on our way, off to our meal.

"At this rate, by the time we're done our entire crew is going to be Quarian," Garrus joked.

"It would be an improvement," Tali remarked. We kept walking through the Citadel, making our way down two more floors before the restaurant I saw on the directory was ahead of us. It was a relatively small place, doubt it's a chain as I've never heard the name before. Arter's. Sounds like a Turian name. We opened the door, and there was a female Turian at the host, or in this case, Hostess stand.

"Welcome to Arter's. Table for three?"

"Just what we need," I nodded.

"Great, right this way," she led us away towards the left side of the restaurant. I noticed a Human man as a waiter on the right side and an Asari on the same. On this side, two more Turians, one male, one female. Curiously, the Turians all had the same facial markings. Lines forming something like a downwards arrow along their faces. Family owned, I guess. Wonder how common this is in Turian society. And judging by the size of the Turian waiters, pre-boot camp. The hostess led us to one of the booths near the far end. I took the inside of the one facing the front of the restaurant, Tali beside me, and Garrus on the other end. The booth across from us was occupied by a small woman with dark hair and dark skin. Maybe Hispanic in heritage. She had her head in her hands and several papers and books at her table and her booth, with a cup of coffee in front of her.

"Levo menu for you, sir, and Dextro for you," the hostess listed off as she handed the three of us our menus. "Plivia will be with you shortly."

"Thanks," the three of us stated as we opened our menus. I'd bet Garrus went straight for the drinks, like I did. Eh, just a beer. A few moments later, the young Turian woman came by with a list on her Omni-tool.

"Hi, you all look like new faces. First time here?" she asked, and her voice confirmed her youth.

"You'd be right," I nodded.

"Great to have you here then! Can I get you started with something to drink?" Garrus ordered a brandy, me, my beer, and Tali, a water. We weren't quite ready to decide on meals yet. "I'll be right back," her mandible's flared in a Turian grin, and she turned to see about the girl at the table opposite of us. "How's the studying, Kyra? Get you anything else?"

"Bad. Very, bad," she groaned. "I want to die. More coffee. Please."

"You sure, Kyra? That's your eighth mug…"

"Pleeeeaaaaaaassssssseeeeeee," she groaned.

"Alright, alright. But, Gavion called asking for you. He's on his way to bring you home."

"But my exams…" Kyra murmured, half asleep. Plivia sighed.

"Thank the spirits for boot camp."

"What's going on there?" Tali asked quietly.

"Sounds like university exams. Not fun. Must be around the time for finals," I explained quietly.

"That seems like a lot for a student," Garrus remarked.

"Not inclined to disagree," I shrugged. "I had high school finals, finals at the Academy, and finals in Rio with my N7 training. High school wasn't as bad as either of them, and a portion of the other two is still physical. As for the rest… I dunno, I've just had a knack for this stuff."

"You saying you were a brilliant Commander from the beginning?" Garrus chuckled.

"Oh, course not. I made plenty mistakes and still had plenty to learn. Good news is that most of those mistakes were in simulations and training exercises." I read over the menu. Hm… Oh, there's Plivia. Giving Kyra that coffee and the drinks for us.

"Ready to order?" I glanced back at the others.

"I think I know what I want," Garrus started.

"I might have forgotten to look at the food," I admitted.

"Ha, grand strategist indeed," Garrus chuckled.

"And all I know about these dishes is that they're Turian. Can I still order them sterilized?"

"Of course. Sorry that we don't have Quarian dishes. They're too expensive for the so few Quarian customers we get," Plivia answered.

"I understand. Maybe with just a bit longer to go over it," Tali requested.

"Absolutely! Just let me know when you're ready."

"I'll try to compare the meals for you," Garrus offered.

"Thank you," Tali nodded. And at that moment, a Turian man barged in, clearly concerned. He was short for a Turian. The Hostess pointed down our aisle and he looked down, seeing the woman in the booth beside us. He rushed down, eyes only for her.

"Kyra! Have you been here all along?!" He exclaimed.

"Fiiiinaaaaaaaallls," she groaned.

"You shouldn't be doing this to yourself. You can't take those exams if you can't even function!"

"What else am I going to do?"

"Well… we did get something in the mail. The Initiative will have us." She lifted her head up slowly. She could barely keep her eyes open.

"Do I need to take more tests?"

"We're already accepted. We just need to go through orientation, get in a cryo pod." Right, this must be that Gavion Plivia mentioned.

"Fffffffffffffuuuuuck it." She started stacking her books and papers together then stormed outside the restaurant, but I noticed her Omni-tool lit up at the hostess stand, and she waved her hand for the credit transfer before leaving. A small woman with a small Turian man in tow. I watched curiously, as did the other two, as she dumped everything into a garbage can outside, then opened her Omni-tool, and somehow launched an incinerate round into the trash can, rocking it back from the impact, all the garbage being lit on fire.

Well, that's an interesting series of events.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: That whole bit with Kyra at the end was a cameo of an editor friend, Palaven. She cameo'd in Andromeda, so, you can put the pieces together. Gavion is her childhood imaginary friend. Yes, it's Turian. She SAYS they're only in a "relationship" in the story, but that won't stop me from teasing her, saying otherwise.**


	23. Good Dreams

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Happy N7 day everyone! Take a small bonus chapter!  
**

 **Commander John Shepard**

With full bellies, we returned to the ship. It was getting late. Hadn't heard from Lia yet, but there's still time for her to decide before we head out. All things considered, not a bad day. But, there's one last thing before it can end. The three of us had just passed through the airlock and were heading to the elevator.

"Still want to have that talk tonight, Tali?" I asked.

"Hm? Oh, yes… about that, right… Yeah, we should probably go do that," Tali answered.

"Well, I am not being around for that. Have fun," Garrus remarked. "I'll let you go first." Tali and I glanced between one another and shrugged. We entered the elevator and took it up to my cabin. We entered, and I made my way to the couch. Resting an arm along the back of it, and tilting my head in its direction, the message clear. 'Sit beside me?'

Tali nodded, taking her seat, and my arm rested around her shoulders. She leaned into me. I kicked my feet up onto the table and leaned my head against the top of hers. I hardly even noticed that I began rubbing her shoulder. Tali still had her legs together and her hands in her lap, not quite relaxed just yet.

"So, we both know that we both know that… sorry, this is probably going to be uncomfortable for a bit," I scratched the back of my head with my other hand. "That mentioning my death is… upsetting for you."

"Yes. As I said, there are a lot of bad memories surrounding… that."

"I uh, heard a bit from Chakwas, she mentioned a bit of that to me." I sighed. "My memory gets a bit fuzzy as soon as I was in space. What… happened?"

"Shepaー John… I heard you. Your-your coms were on. We saw your vitals. You were… talking. Becoming delirious. Then you were just…" she choked. "Gone." I heard her sniffle and pulled her closer against me.

"I'm sorry. I wish that I could do more than just say that," I murmured.

"You-You're here now. That's all that matters," Tali allowed a hand to place itself against my chest.

"I'm sorry to ask this, but I need to know. I need to know what it did to you."

"Why?" I released a deep breath as I prepared to answer.

"Because I caused it."

Silence.

"Keelah, John, it's not your fault. It's the Reapers, or… whoever was responsible that day."

"Still. Besides, it'll be… motivation to make sure I never put you through that again."

"John…" She looked up, surprised, and… touched, I think. She took another deep breath and looked down." What else could it have done? It tore me apart, John. I lost the man who-" she paused. "Meant so much to me. Just… Keelah," she sniffled. I continued rubbing her shoulder, still holding her close. "I'm ok. I'm ok…" She took a deep breath. "What about you, John?"

"How am I dealing with it?"

"Yes. Sorry, just… I don't want to remember any more of… those memories, right now."

"Of course," I gave a small squeeze. "Well, I still have a hard time wrapping my head around it. Just, everything went black, then there was the blinding light over the operating table I woke up on, two years later. I don't remember anything at all in between. I mean, two years of my life, gone, just like that. Throw in the fact that I, sorry, died, and was brought back? It's not like I was the only casualty. Those men and women deserved their lives back just as much as I did. Their friends and family are still mourning while mine get to celebrate my return? That just feels… wrong."

"Then why make jokes?"

"It's a weird sort of… masking… catharsis. Cracking a joke will probably make other people think that I'm completely fine, keep up the stoic face of Commander Shepard," I scoffed. "You know." I cleared my throat and deepened my voice. "I'm the big hero! I must always be brave and confident, infallible!... All that bullshit. But, hey, if the Reapers are coming, I guess I do need to be an inspiring symbol."

"I'm sorry, John."

"Don't be. Not your fault." I allowed a grin. "I let myself be more… human. A person, around you and Garrus."

"Then why do you make jokes around him as well?"

"I see through the own masking jokes he makes. He knows it. He sees through mine, I know it. I guess it's like an unspoken understanding," I shrugged. "As for the catharsis? Somehow, it… temporarily gives me some relief. Helps it just slide past me. If that makes sense."

"It does, but, there's one part that doesn't. I'm sorry, but this is going to sound… bad." I raised a brow curiously.

"Shoot. I won't get offended."

"Alright… Then why don't you make jokes about Akuze or Elysium?"

"Damn. That's… Well. Everyone has their limits. Those are two things I just could never bring myself to even smile about. Fake or otherwise."

"I understand, and I'm sorry. I just-"

"Don't be sorry, you wanted to understand. Communication is a good thing for us to have."

"Ok, good," Tali took another breath, and let herself relax. Getting comfortable.

"So, I don't know about you, but I'm thinking we really shouldn't end the night on such serious notes," I remarked.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Tali allowed herself a chuckle. "But… what should we talk about?"

"We could ask questions about one another? Our people?"

"Er, sure, that sounds alright. You first."

"Sure. What's the cloth wrap thing I see all Quarians with?"

"Oh, that's an easy one. It's called a realk," she explained, tugging at the sides of her hood. The color represents our position. Purple is engineer. And the patterns represent our clan."

"So, if I see anyone with the same swirls as you, I'll know their Clan Zorah. Sorry, follow up question, then your turn. Your clans. I'm trying to figure out just how much they compare to human families and their last names. So, your clanmates. Are they all related to you by blood? Aunts, uncles, cousins, so on so forth?"

"They are genetically related to me, yes. But consider how on the Fleet we have the single child policy. Neither of my parents had siblings. My grandmother on my mother's side had a twin brother. But Clan Zorah was a large and well known clan before the Geth rebelled. If not for the policy, I'd likely have not just siblings, but multiple groups of cousins, second cousins, and further along."

"Ah, so it's pretty much the same thing as our family names," I nodded. "Your question?"

"Still on the topic of family. I want to know about yours. I know of both your parents, but that's honestly it."

"Well, I am an only child. And you already know what I'm what other Humans would generally call a Spacer. Technically I was a born on a hospital back on Earth, but my mom was still serving in the Alliance with the exception of the last two months of her pregnancy. But I grew up on Alliance ships, just not one's going onto the front lines. When your parents are both dedicated to the Alliance," I shrugged, letting her fill in the gap. "But don't take that the wrong way. They still made time for me. The reason? Well, turns out my grandparents apparently have a lot to do with that. They were pieces of shit."

"Oh… sorry."

"Don't be, I never met 'em never had to put up with their shit. And hey, their shittiness inspired both my parents to be better."

"That's good, at least. Did your parents tell you what they had done?"

"Everything," I chuckled. "From alcohol to red-sand, and everything in between. Junkies. My dad would tell stories of how he'd have to sleep with a bat under his pillow every night to keep his drunk or drugged dad from crawling through his window after a night of god knows what, and from stealing my dad's stuff to sell off for drug money. And my grandma, and my mom's older sister, who was just as bad, would try and convince her to whore herself out when she was in her teens, but still underage, I might add, so they could take her money. She never agreed, so they had her working legit early on. And took that money from her."

"Keelah, that's horrible! Both stories!" Tali exclaimed.

"Those are actually some of the more tame ones."

"I don't think I want to know about the others," Tali murmured.

"Won't tell what you don't want to hear," I ended with a yawn. One that was contagious, as Tali followed with her own. Holy shit her yawns are adorable. I even heard her smack her lips together afterward and she snuggled up against me closer. "I think we're getting tired," I chuckled. My eyes were starting to feel heavy.

"Yeah. I guess we should be getting to sleep," Tali responded quietly. Without moving.

"But not yet?" I smirked.

"No, not yet. I'm comfortable." My arm was still around her, her head still on my shoulder, my head still against the top of hers. She shifted her body so that she was laying on her side, her legs up on the couch, on top of one another. "More comfortable now." I chuckled lightly and just kept rubbing her shoulder. Her breathing was quiet, gentle. I like feeling her weight on me like this, feeling her breathe, listening to her breathe. I'm not quite sure how long I was listening to it before I heard something surprising.

Tali began snoring. A very quiet, barely noticeable snort at the end of each breath.

There is no way in fucking hell I'm waking her up. In fact… I shifted my legs and weight, subtly, to try and get more comfortable without waking her up. I again leaned my head against hers, and she hummed in her sleep. I let out another yawn and shut my eyes.

There was nothing but good dreams.


	24. New Addition

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, few things I want to say today. First, a solemn farewell to one of the world' brightest and most inspirational lights, Mr. Stan Lee. I wish I could dedicate a chapter to him, but I barely have enough time to even write regular chapters. I'm trying. Least this week I'll have two days off, so I might be able to get you all a chapter with more sustenance. Like a recruitment mission. Plus the build up to it. I hope. Second is me apologizing why this chapter is as short as it is. I honestly only had yesterday completely free and the afternoon of the day. The other days I'd try to do more but I need to have some fun else I go insane. So, here's hoping for better luck for the next one. See you all around, hope you enjoy, and in honor of Mr. Lee, Excelsior**

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

Hmph… This might just be the most comfortable sleep I've ever had. But why is that? Very nice cushions below me, and- I yawned, smacking my lips. I stretched my legs out over the… sofa, I think, I'm lying on. Wait so what is my head laying against th-

Keelah.

I shot right up, eyes wide, John's quarters.

"Woah! Everything alright?" he asked, concerned.

"I-Sorry. I-Uh, sleep, no, wait. I don't-" I placed my hands against my visor, blushing, embarrassed. "Keelah, I'm so sorry!"

"Sorry? Sorry for what?" John questioned.

"For-For this!" I began wringing my hands. John was just confused.

"What? Falling asleep on me? Don't apologize," He gave a reassuring grin as he turned me around to face him. "It was adorable. You were adorable." He chuckled. "The little snores-"

"I snore?!"

"Tali, come on," he laughed. "It was so quiet, it was cute."

"B-But, what about you? Did I keep you from getting any sleep?"

"Not at all. Best sleep I had in years. Soon as I noticed you had dozed off, I finished getting comfortable and went to sleep myself. I only woke up minutes before you did. I was way too happy about all this to even think about waking you up."

"...Oh…"

"Tali," John began, looking right into my eyes. "You need to get it through your thick little head that I actually like you. A helluva lot. I'm not sure if it's the same thing for Quarians, but for Humans, falling asleep with the person you-" he stopped himself for a moment. "Really, really like? Jesus, it's like I'm in high school again," he murmured after his question. "But that's pretty much top tier goals of any real relationship." He's right, I really do need to stop working myself up. But I can't help it. I took a deep breath.

"That's… good to hear, John. And, er, that's not exclusive to Humans." He smiled.

"I'm glad to hear that. So, head down? See if Lia's shown up and have breakfast before we set out?"

"Sure."

 **Commander John Shepard**

Gotta admit I'm really concerned about Tali. Maybe more than I need to be, but, still. There are some deep-seated psychological issues there. That extreme self-doubt, selflessness to self-detrimental extremes, and I'm certain she has at least a moderate level of anxiety. Her father definitely pushed her too hard and gave far too little in return. As for the selflessness, I think that's just a byproduct of the way Quarian society needs to be right now. Maybe I should mention it to Chakwas, but later. In the meantime, we made our way towards the elevator, exiting my quarters for the little interim between my quarters and the elevator. And something caught my eye. Something wasn't right. Out of the corner of my eye, an unnatural wave in the air. And the fact that when I paid closer attention, it was gone, confirmed it.

A cloaking device is in play. A damn good one I might add, but they can't hide _everything_. Not from those trained to notice them. Instincts and training kicked in. Tali was on my right, so I was already covering her. I launched myself at the oh-so-slight wave and shimmer. Arm for where the nick should be, pinning the mass to the wall. I might be unarmed, but I can still kick the shit out of this-

The intruder coughed, it sounded feminine. The neck I felt against my forearm felt small, and I felt a hood as well.

"Keelah, what's going on?" Tali exclaimed.

"Hey Shep," the intruder managed to sputter out. Wait… The intruder's cloak went offline, revealing a small woman, hooded, with a purple tattoo connecting her bottom lip to her chin.

"Kasumi?" I questioned, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"Can you ease up a-" she coughed again. "Bit?" I obliged but kept her pinned for now. This was all still pretty sketchy after all. "Fair enough. Well, what can I say? I'm nosy." I gave Tali a glance, then back to Kasumi.

"About anything in particular?"

"An empty sleeper pod, some gossip among the crew about why said sleeper pod was empty, you know, the juicy details." Still managing to be cheery like this.

"You were spying on us for gossip?" I applied a bit more pressure.

"Touchy," she struggled a smirk. "I can tell you want to keep this quiet. Alright, I can keep secrets." I again loosened up. "I get it. I've… been around that block before."

"No more spying on me. Or Tali," I warned.

"Sure, sorry, just wanted to know if you two were together. I didn't expect you to see through the cloak. Anyways, now that I know, I don't have to."

"Couldn't you have just asked?" Tali asked.

"I'm not so desperately nosey as to make either of you squirm," Kasumi managed a chuckle. "Are we good? Choking isn't really my thing." Not sure if it's in spite of the situation, myself, or to try and help make things better, but I snorted.

"I'm good. Tali?" I asked.

"Er… sure." I released my hold on Kasumi and she brought a hand to her own throat to rub it.

"Note to self. If I ever try to sneak around you, rely on more than my cloak. Seriously, mine's top of the line, how did you spot it?" Kasumi asked.

"N7 has a whole individual training regimen dedicated to visual cloaking tech. Using it and spotting it. There're a few giveaways that no new version of has been able to cover. Not yet at any rate," I explained.

"Using? Does that mean you have one then?"

"No, Cerberus apparently skimped on that when they got some N7 armor. Still. I can use it, but it's generally not my style."

"Why's that, Jo-Shepard?" Tali asked. I noticed Kasumi smirked, and I did too.

"Think about it. I'm Squad lead and need to command the squad. My second, Garrus, is the long-range marksman. Which brings me to the first real point. If I'm using the cloak to get to a good vantage like that, then I won't have good eyes on the squad and the opposition. I can't command as effectively. Besides, in a firefight, I generally prefer to not be hanging in the back. Using the cloak to get up close and personal? Still don't generally prefer to do that either, not in a sneaking fashion at least. And again, I wouldn't have good eyes for command. Now-"

"Commander," EDI spoke up. "I apologize for not alerting you to Ms. Goto's presence, but her cloaking technology was able to bypass even my sensors."

"Yes! Fooled the AI!" Kasumi nearly quite literally patted herself on the back.

"Additionally, Lia'Vael has arrived at the ship. I would find it wise for you to greet her. My biometric readings indicate she is nervous."

"Well, shit. Guess breakfast will have to wait. Tali, you're free to come with or go eat," I offered.

"I'd like to join, but I really must be in engineering for the departure preparations," Tali explained.

"Well, I suppose my Chief Engineer should be doing Chief Engineer things," I remarked. "Alright, just go grab a snack of some sort."

"Aw, what a caring boyfriend," Kasumi teased.

"Why thank you," I responded.

"Of course," Kasumi bowed slightly, going on with the joke. "Now, if you want to keep the fact that Tali slept in your quarters quiet, I would suggest that Shep here uses it first go see our new addition. Then Tali and I will use it after. You certainly don't want all three of us in that elevator. Then they would _really_ talk."

"Good idea…" Tali remarked, nerves showing themselves again.

"So much for ladies first," I joked, stepping into the elevator and taking it down. The door to CIC opened, and I stepped out, heading towards the airlock.

"Good morning, Commander," Kelly Chambers greeted. Hm, first time she's done that in a while. Maybe later I should try to get friendly again. I'll just start with this.

"Morning, Kelly," I responded with a grin, which I noticed caught her by surprise. And I noticed several inquisitive glances. Ones that weren't entirely certain on the assumptions they were making. I wonder how many of them were in such a state of mind because of disbelief I'd be with a Quarian, or not wanting to assume so much. Either way, it didn't slow me down. Made my way to the airlock, and waited as it finished its cycle. Revealing a Quarian woman with a duffel bag slung over her shoulder.

"Commander Shepard!" she stood straight, ridged, her hand going up in a salute. A human salute.

"At ease, Lia. No need for that. Welcome to the Normandy."

"Oh, holy shit, another one?" Joker exclaimed, laughing. "What's next? Are we joining the Migrant Fleet? And hell, don't we have enough Engineers?"

"She's not an Engineer, Joker. She's Mordin's new assistant."

"Oh shit, the crazy hyper Hamster is getting help?" I returned my attention back to Lia.

"Don't mind Joker. As the name implies, he's joking, not trying to be a… genuine asshole."

"Hey! How dare you assume what kind of asshole I'm trying to be!" Joker returned.

"You're lucky you're my friend. And a cripple, dipshit," I chuckled.

"Yeah, yeah. Up yours."

"That's up yours, sir."

"Oh, fuck off." Chuckling, I once again returned my focus to Lia. Who was very surprised. And confused.

"Come on, I'll show you the crew level, then bring you back up here to meet Mordin."

"Can we… not meet him right away?"

"We can, but I want you to know where to get food, medical attention, and a bed. If we start with Mordin, I won't be able to get you away to let you know these necessities."

"You are… probably right," she chuckled awkwardly. "So, is your pilot always like… that? The rest of the crew?"

"I run a loose ship for those I like and trust. On the first Normandy, that applied to everyone, even if I didn't really know everyone. It was fully manned and a busy time. On this ship, I'm having… difficulties with that. To say I have plenty of reasons to hate Cerberus is the understatement of the damn year. But, back to your question. Joker's a good friend, I trust him. From the old days. Like Garrus and Tali. So, among them, shit-talking is accepted, reciprocated, and encouraged. I don't look at myself as their Commanding Officer. Just their friend. Who… in combat… will give them orders. That honestly I hardly need to give them."

"Oh," Lia was clearly surprised. We entered the elevator, and I keyed for crew quarters. "Are all Human Captains this way?"

"Captain? Oh, you just mean the ship's CO, right?" Lia nodded. I continued, "In my opinion, only the good ones. At least in varying extents. No one likes the hardass, one-hundred-percent by the book captains. They just tire out and annoy everyone. By the same token, the ones who are too loose just get trampled on by their own men. I know how to hold tight when I need to," I shrugged. "And when you do, you find you rarely need to."

"Hm. I think I can see that. Quarian captains tend to be stricter than not. But I only ever saw the Captain of my ship once. Live ships are quite populated after all." The elevator doors opened. So, on your right, lounge and the women's bathroom. But I understand your suits really keep you from needing those. On the left, crew quarters, which is where you'll find beds. Far left, a quiet observation port that doubles as a library. And behind us…" I trailed off as I led her around. Garrus, Grunt, Jacob, Miranda, Kasumi, Chakwas, and several of the general crew were enjoying their breakfast. "We have the mess hall."

"This Quarian doesn't look like the other female. Who is she?" Grunt asked bluntly.

"I see you accepted the offer, Lia. Welcome aboard," Garrus greeted.

"Another new recruit, Shepard? I assume she won't be joining the ground team?" Miranda questioned.

"No. Lia'Vael here will be afforded the same benefits and payment given to Kenn, but her training, and her choice will see her working as an aid for Mordin."

"I'm sure the Professor will be grateful for the help," Jacob added.

"If you don't mind, Ms. Vael," Chakwas began. "I know you won't be going into the field, but I'd be a poor medical officer if I wasn't prepared for any possibility, but I'll need to give you a physical. Know your blood type, make sure I'll be properly stocked."

"I understand, Doctor."

"Thank you, dear. I assure you, it'll be quite painless." Lia nodded in reply.

"As you can see, Med-bay is very obviously over on the right. If you're ready, I'll take you to go see Mordin."

"Oh! Of course!" Lia answered, just as the ship shifted, rocking just noticeably. We were departing. We returned to the elevator, and back up to CIC, taking a hard right to the Tech room, the decon sequence starting as soon as the door behind us closed. Lia was getting nervous again. She was still. Very still. I'm not even sure I hear her breathing. The sequence finished, and the door opened, Mordin at work at his terminal, eyes peering down his microscope. "Keelah, it's really him," she whispered. Mordin didn't hear.

"Mordin!" I stated louder, getting his attention. He looked up, seeing both of us.

"Shepard. See you came with Quarian. Not Tali'Zorah. Markings, not Clan Zorah, suit, pre-pilgrimage. Color of biological training, not engineering. Not replacement, know that much. Curious, who is this?"

"Mordin, this is Lia'Vael. Another pilgrim I've offered to help. If you'll have her, she will be more than happy to act as your assistant," I explained.

"It's an honor to meet you, Professor! I loved watching your show when I was young!" Lia exclaimed.

"Science fun today?" Mordin was surprised. "Show cancelled. Lawsuits and reports of… explosive results in household experiments."

"I know! It was so disappointing! If they only followed your clear instructions, it would all have been well under control."

"You know what? I'm not even going to ask. I'm just going to leave you both here to get started. Let me know if you have any problems."

Now, finally, maybe I can get some food.


	25. Justicar

**Commander John Shepard**

Illium. A garden world. Officially, it's not an Asari world, but colonized and operated by Asari corporations. In that sense, it's like Noveria. But Noveria is still relatively remote, and not immensely populated. But Illium is covered in sprawling cities. Massive ground settlement is only at its peak at the higher latitudes, and equatorial locations have populations in arcology skyscrapers. Nearly eighty-five million people live on this planet. This middle-man between the Asari Republics and the Terminus systems. But no one should be fooled. This planet is just as cutthroat as Omega, it's just hidden under a layer of luxury. The laws of Council space don't apply here. Any drug you want, you can legally get. Paperwork or no. Labor laws are much thinner, as are safety laws. But what really pisses me off about this planet is the fact that slavery is legal on Illium. No, I don't care that they refuse to call it that, or how regulated it is. It's slavery, and that's unacceptable.

Moving on, the Normandy is en-route to a dock at the Capital of Nos Astra. Founded in 1617. Still crazy to think about comparing those dates to human history. Joker had already gone through the relatively simple, but pricey process of getting docking clearance, let alone a dock at Nos Astra. But hey, Cerberus' wallet.

We passed through a small layer of clouds, the city appearing ahead of us, a sunset behind it. Massive, and I mean massive skyscrapers, reaching miles into the sky being the tallest. Below the Normandy, water. Nos Astra was beachfront, and given its location, this was a beach that one can actually go to. It was an almost comical contrast, seeing the massive skyscrapers, then specks of beachfront houses, condos, and high-end hotels. Like Los Angeles, I suppose. But frankly, I can't help but think the best comparison, at least visually, for this city, is Coruscant in Star Wars. The skycar highways, even the architecture almost makes it a splitting image. Joker followed the route that Nos Astra's air traffic control set out for us. High enough to be over the sky-car lanes, but still not over the higher skyscrapers. As a result, the Normandy was going slow. That is, relatively speaking. Anyone in the buildings we're going past would still see us speeding right by. Hm, I remember TIM saying that Liara was here on Illium. We should find her, see if she'll join us. Regardless if TIM thinks she's working for the Broker or not.

There's the dock. A large tower beside what looks like one of the many commercial districts. Like a tourist trap. This will be the Normandy's home for… the next couple of days, give or take. Joker started taking us into one of the docks closer to the top, still technically a civilian dock, but one large enough for ships of our size. The ship slowed even more, the docking clamps and docking tube so we can exit were waiting. Joker took us in, the ship was clamped down, and the tube attached. True, the Normandy might have landing gear, but it's essentially there just in case of necessity. It's too heavy to land on most planets. I've got my armor on me, and my weapons are prepared, but only my Phalanx is on me. Why? To begin, we need to learn where we can find the Assassin and the Justicar. That doesn't need everyone on hand, but I would still rather have a full team, and my full armaments, ready in case we'll need them for the recruitment. So, because I do actually like having them around, Garrus and Tali are going to join me for learning where they are. If I'm going to need a squad, I've ordered Grunt, Miranda, and Jack to remain on standby with the shuttle and my weapons. Thing is, if The Justicar is first, Jack will stay, and if the Assassin, Miranda will stay. I understand to say that Justicars are dedicated to their moral code is a significant understatement. I turned to see Garrus and Tali approaching.

"I hope this visit goes better than the last…" she murmured. Right, I remember her story. She and her fellow pilgrims first arrived here to try and get the Geth data off to the right people. Just as they were turned away, their ship was blown up. Tali and Keenah'Breizh were off the ship when it happened, and were the only survivors. From here they snuck aboard a ship bound for the Citadel. I still wish she never had to go through that. I hope the fact that she's armed will keep the people here from thinking she's a slave. As soon as the ship was secure, we disembarked. At the end of the docking tube was something akin to a small waiting area. A dressed up Asari with two LOKI mechs at her side approached from the hallway that would lead us out to Nos Astra itself. The Asari was smiling and with her hands clasped in front of her. Considering the temperature was in the high seventies, it's not surprising, hell, it wouldn't be if it was below freezing, that the Asari's dress still completely revealed her stomach.

"Welcome to Nos Astra, Commander Shepard." They already know who I am? "My name is Careena. I'm the Concierge for this docking bay. You will be happy to know that we have been instructed to waive all docking and administration fees for your visit. Fees you've already paid are currently being refunded." Wait, why the hell are they doing this? "If you have any questions or suggestions on where to spend your visit, it would be my pleasure to be of assistance."

"You can start by telling me who told you to waive our fees."

"The order came from an influential information Broker in the city, Liara T'Soni. She paid all fees on your behalf, and an extra fee to have you dock near her office."

"Liara knew we were coming?" Tali asked, surprised.

"More likely she had contacts who informed her. If she's an information broker, she absolutely would have seen Khalisah's interview by now," Garrus remarked.

"Yes, your return has been making headlines. She asked that I direct you to speak with her at your convenience. Her personal office overlooks the trading floor, and you can access her company office from the trading floor."

"An office in a prime location?" I whistled. "She's done well for herself. So, how do we get to the trade floor?"

"Follow the hallway and up the stairs to customs. Liara has already arranged for your passage through customs, so simply pass through. The identification on your Omni-tools will allow you passage as well as clearance for your weapons. Once you pass through, you'll find yourself on the trading floor. Please, accept these maps detailing places of interest in the local area," Careena's omni-tool flashed and the quick transfer began. We accepted, and almost instantly they pinged with finished download. "Please, enjoy your stay." I nodded my thanks and we followed the path directed. It seems the docks on this level and about two lower, and three higher converge to customs here. One staircase diverged into a convergence point of the other related docks, and given the amount of people, one of them was a transport ship. A large mass of people from at least most of the galaxy's people. We got more than a few eyes aimed at us. We were armored after all. I'd assume no one recognized me though. We reached customs and the crowds were dividing. Most people were going to the right towards a large counter sprawling the wall separating its side from ours by thick bulletproof glass. On the other side, clerks, most of whom were Asari, but a few Turians. Each clerk working with anyone trying to get through. On the left, a set of scanners for those returning or already with clearance. Like us. It just scans our Omni-tools for the proper IDs. We passed through without hassle and came out onto the trading floor. This complex seemed to be one of Nos Astra's smaller ones, relatively that is. The trading floor had a rather beautiful view of the sprawling city and of the sunset in the distance, the lights of the city slowly becoming the ones that take charge.

As for the floor itself, the main trade here was in stocks. People gathered around groups of consoles, frantically buying and selling. Around the center of the trading floor, there was a large half-circle with tinted, one-way windows looking over the floor. The sign above reading: "T'Soni Information Brokers." Not the most creative of names, but it works. The way up to her offices were by an adjacent wall. Glass panes with the name of her company. There appeared to be a wing coming off the first Asari letter, no doubt a T. The symbol repeated on the smaller versions of the name in other languages. We made our way to the offices and the door opened for us. An Asari secretary sitting behind a desk, and a few customers waiting and reading from their Omni-tools in the room's seats. The secretary's skin was more of a purple shade, but the face still had lingering blue. She smiled.

"Welcome to T'Soni Information Brokers, Commander Shepard. Ms. T'Soni will be very pleased to see you." That got the attention of the others waiting. "Don't be surprised, once she heard you had returned, she asked that I watch for you. She instructed that I send you to her as soon as you arrived. Please, upstairs and to the office at the end. I shall inform her you have arrived." I gave my thanks, and once again, moved as instructed. Up the stairs was the main workplace. Salarians, Asari, and Humans working in cubicles, talking on phones, or speaking with customers. Liara can't be expected to deal with all her customers after all. The walk to her personal office was short, and the door opened for me, the three of us walking in. Liara was in a green and white dress with her back turned to us and was in a video call, a bald human man in a white suit on the other end. Liara was speaking quietly, but enough to be heard. Coldly.

"Have you ever faced an Asari Commando unit before? Few humans have." The man was nervous. "I'll make it simple. Either you pay me, or I flay you alive. With my mind." This isn't the same woman I knew two years ago. A glance between the others showed the same surprise. The call ended, and Liara turned. Eyes wide, smiling. "Shepard!" her arms went wide and she hurried to us, wrapping her arms around me first in a hug. Surprise kept me from returning it right away, but I did. She held me… ok, maybe not so surprisingly close. She separated, still smiling. It wasn't lost on me that Tali had stepped closer to me. "My sources told me you were alive before the news release, but even after that I never believed…" she sighed. "It's very good to see you." She turned her attention to Garrus and Tali, still smiling. "And both of you."

"Good to see you too, Liara," Tali responded, relaxing now that Liara wasn't clinging to me.

"It is. It's surprising that the Archaeologist we rescued from a bubble so long ago has sources now," I remarked. Liara allowed a brief laugh.

"It is, isn't it? Sources, contacts, employees, and even a little hired muscle. It pays the bills."

"Gotta admit some curiosity as to how you started this," Garrus mused.

"My inheritance from my Mother. She was one of the most influential Matriarchs after all," Liara explained. No signs of sadness, but I do suppose it's been two years, and no doubt often explaining that.

"And why an Info broker?" I asked.

"That's a long story."

"I was told you were working for the Shadow Broker," I remarked. She gave a short laugh.

"That's what Cerberus told you?"

"You know?" Surprising.

"It's one of the reasons I was reluctant to believe. My sources who spotted you on Omega reported you were with two individuals I know to be Cerberus operatives. I put the pieces together. You're going after the Collectors with Cerberus aid."

"Perceptive," I remarked.

"I am a good information broker."

"You know I'd be happy to have you back on the crew." She sighed and looked down.

"I wish I could, Shepard. I really do. My business here would not falter if I temporarily moved myself elsewhere. I have commitments here. Personal… objectives that I can't abandon."

"Like? Anything we could help with?" She didn't meet my eyes.

"I have… debts to repay. If you want to help, I believe I have something I could use your help for. I trust you, and you have hacking expertise."

"I'll help, but this is pretty back alley for you. What's going on?" Liara got quiet.

"I can't say. Not yet. Illium is not a safe planet, Shepard. There are eyes and ears upon me I don't want. I trust you three, I really do. What I don't trust is this room."

"We could always meet on my ship, share a drink, talk," I suggested.

"I'm grateful for the offer, but this isn't information I wish Cerberus to hear either." She took a deep breath. "Now, why don't you tell me why you came to Illium in the first place?"

"We have two more recruits on our list for the mission. An Asari Justicar by the name of Samara, and a Drell Assassin by the name of Thane Krios."

"Justicar? Yes, yes, I'm aware of her. She arrived recently, and registered with Tracking Officer Dara and… recently journeyed to a nearby Commercial spaceport. Last night there was a crime in the area that Samara believes is linked to a culprit she is hunting."

"She needs a tracking officer? I thought Justicars embodied Asari law," Garrus mused.

"They do, in many ways. But their code is poorly suited for intergalactic law and politics. In Asari space, we don't question their judgments. While not everyone agrees with their often harsh punishments, they are accepted, given what one must go through in order to become a Justicar. There are none who abuse their power. Justicars kill criminals without trial or hesitation. They do not actively seek out the smaller crimes, but if they find them, they act. I believe you can see where this causes an issue for the other races."

"And that makes a poor mix for Illium. Even if you're not breaking the law here, I'd wager you're breaking their code somehow," Garrus nodded, understanding.

"Exactly. I believe it would be wise for you to secure her cooperation quickly before she causes an incident. As for Thane Krios, his name has crossed my desk before. He arrived here a week ago. I believe he's targeting a corporate executive. You might recognize the name. Nassana Dantius."

"Yeah, that sounds familiar… she was a diplomat when we saw her, right?" I asked.

"Indeed. She tricked us into tying a loose end of hers. Her slaver sister. What I've learned since moving here? She's worse than her sister. Go find Samara, I'll find more information on Krios. If you still wish to help me, we can talk more after you have your recruitments."

"Are you sure?"

"I am. You have less time than I. Now, there's a transport bay on the other side of the building. Feel free to take the employee exit at the back. I'd recommend though preparing for firefights. Samara's code will not allow her to abandon her investigation, and the Eclipse have a strong presence in that area. If you wish for her aid, you will likely need to help conclude her business first," Liara warned.

"Wouldn't be the first time I had to do a favor before securing one of my crew member's help. Thanks, Liara. I promise we'll help you out as soon as we've finished our recruiting.

"Thank you, Shepard."

 **Commander John Shepard**

Our shuttle landed in a landing zone just outside the police precinct. We disembarked to see a Volus walking towards a private cargo ship flanked by two Turian bodyguards, with an Asari in a police uniform, hand hovering over her pistol, clearly demanding that he not leave. We couldn't hear what she was saying, but he was clearly ordered to stay put, and the Asari returned to the precinct. Best place to start. We entered, the secretary clearly suspicious about a fireteam of armed and armored individuals. It was busy, cops on calls, talking business with one another, plenty else. The same Asari we just saw outside saw us, and her eyes narrowed. I suppose she thinks we might have some sort of link. A Justicar investigating a crime, then us. She muttered to herself and approached.

"Alright, do you want to tell me what five heavily armed and armored unknown personnel are doing walking into my Precinct?"

"We're looking for Justicar Samara." Her eyes narrowed further.

"If you have a score to settle, take it somewhere else. I've got enough shit I'm dealing with already."

"Don't worry, we're actually looking for her to join us. We need a Justicar's help." She relaxed.

"As in, help that will take her out of my district?" I nodded.

"Goddess, best news I've heard all day. Follow me," she waved back and led us to her office. Detective Anaya, the name read. She sat in her desk, and, well, there weren't enough chairs for everyone. So, we stood. "Justicars do usually work alone, but they are drawn to impossible causes. Think yours will get her attention?"

"Would you consider a war against the Collectors, ending with a journey through Omega-4 impossible enough?"

"Yeah, I'd say that'll do it. I'll happily get you to her right away. She's at the crime scene. Shows how damn bold it was, almost right next to the Precinct."

"What about this crime got her attention?" Miranda asked.

"You mean beyond their version of law enforcement?" Miranda nodded in reply. "Only that she believes it's linked to her own personal investigation."

"Detective, I used to be C-sec. Detective too, in fact. There's more to your need to get her out than just a political incident, isn't there?"

"The fact that my bosses want me to detain her? A Justicar? I know her code won't allow that. I try it, she'll have to kill me. Honor-bound. You lure her away with your suicide mission, I'm going to celebrate with about fifty bottles of hard booze. It's been that kind of day."

"You have a right to disobey an order to your certain death," I remarked.

"Wait, did you just say we can disobey suicidal orders? Why couldn't you have told me that two years ago?" Garrus joked.

"That's about twice a day. We ignore those, we'd never get anything done," Tali joined in.

"As if either of you needs my orders to walk into hell with me. You'd never forgive me if I left you behind," I retorted.

"Got me there," Garrus responded. "Jokes aside, detective, what was the crime?"

"Murder of a Volus merchant. It was clearly a professional hit, so we know it wasn't junkies looking for a score. Given the Eclipse are giving us trouble in there, I'd bet good credits it's on them. Can't prove it, but if the Volus was also dirty, probably a deal gone bad."

"I'm familiar with the Eclipse cells on Omega, any differences here?" Garrus continued.

"I imagine it's the same as their standard. You get a true uniform for a murder, they sell red sand, trade illegal weapons tech, smuggling, both criminals and illicit goods. Might also just be that the Volus was an Initiate's promotion."

"Might be it's not so much the crime itself that interests the Justicar, but the Eclipse. If they are involved, which seems rather likely, maybe the Eclipse smuggled her target," Garrus mused.

"If you're right, that means she doesn't plan to stay here long anyway. You help her out, or recruit her, she won't be my problem anymore. Head on over to the crime scene. They'll know to let you through."

"Thanks, detective. We'll have this resolved quickly."

"I hope so. Who are you anyway?" I grinned and held out a hand.

"Commander John Shepard, Council Spectre." Her eyes widened.

"I am suddenly no longer doubtful you'll get her out of here. I'd wish you luck, but I don't think you need it." We took our leave of the precinct, making our way to the crime scene. The two officers standing outside stepped aside to let us through. Cautiously, we moved through the crime scene. Even finding a curiously placed data pad detailing some stolen supplies. And Eclipse mercs with a pair of LOKI mechs. They were apparently gearing up as a squad they sent after Samara went dark. Not surprising. After hearing that helpful bit of information, we made ourselves known and put them down before they knew what was going on. We moved through another doorway just as an Asari merc was sent flying in our direction, her head slamming against the wall so hard it left a dent, and when her body hit the floor, her eyes were rolled up into her head and blood was starting to pool around her head. Weapons ready, we quickly looked around to find what threw the merc, and if there are other hostiles around. We appeared to be in a loading bay of sorts, and above, in what might have been a supervisor's office, was another merc with her back to a wall. And taking small steps backward until her back pressed against the said wall.

A figure strode slowly ahead of her, surrounded by the blue aura of biotics. A red and black form-fitting outfit. The torso of the outfit went down like a V-neck all the way to… maybe just above the navel. A golden bracer around her neck, and red… headwear on her forehead. Samara paced around her, asking questions, but we couldn't hear through the glass and walls. Her back was to us now. Clearly, it didn't go well. The Eclipse rose her gun, Samara clenched her fist and reached out with her biotics, flinging her out the window, she screamed as she was sent flying, impacting against a stack of crates and knocking them down. Samara jumped out then pushed downwards with her biotics. It appeared like she was gliding straight towards the merc. Said merc was panicked, struggling to crawl back, facing the Justicar all the while. Samara was just cold, stoic. Striding forward as the merc feebly raised an arm in defense, still struggling to crawl back. Samara's boot, looking like a pair of high heels came down on her neck.

"What was the name of the ship she left on?" she questioned.

"Go to hell," the Eclipse managed a response. Samara made no expression.

"Find peace in the embrace of the goddess." She turned her foot, snapping the merc's neck. Now, we had her attention. I gestured for the others to put away their weapons, and her biotic aura faded. She stepped out from the toppled crates.

"My name is Samara, a servant of the Justicar code. My quarrel is with these Eclipse sisters," she gestured at the corpse. "But I see five well-armed people before me."

"You would be a worthy foe," Grunt remarked. Samara started to glow blue

"Stop! No, no, no. Grunt, fucking really?" I exclaimed. "Please excuse him, Samara, we're not looking to fight you. We, in fact, need your help," I defused the situation. The aura died.

"If you want to spar with someone, Grunt, don't use those words. And wait for her to agree to help us," Garrus added. He just grumbled.

"So we are friend, not foe?"

"We are," I admit I don't approve of killing that merc in cold blood, but this isn't the time to bring up any issues I have with it.

"Then how may I be of service to you?"

"I'm looking for recruits for my mission. Your name was one of one on several dossiers sent my way."

"What is the mission?"

"The Collectors have been abducting entire Human colonies. There's more to it that I'll happily explain another time, but I know they won't stop with just Humanity. And yes, we have proof they are the culprits. We stopped one such abduction in progress on Horizon."

"I sense the truth in what you say, and I am humbled to be chosen for a task that is clearly so worthy. But I seek an incredibly dangerous fugitive."

"Called it. Ace-detective Vakarian is right again," Garrus remarked. Samara continued.

"I cornered her here on Illium, but the Eclipse sisters smuggled her off-world. I must find the name of the ship she left on before the trail goes cold." Samara had returned to the corpse as she spoke. She showed no emotion, not even in her voice, but I figure there was a hint of frustration. Disappointment, maybe. The door opened behind us, footsteps.

"I really hoped you'd be willing to go with them Justicar. I've been… ordered to take you into custody if you won't leave." Uh-oh. I guess Anaya has a strong sense of duty. I can respect that. Samara approached Anaya, the detective was nervous, but holding her ground.

"You risk a great deal by following your orders, Detective. Fortunately, I will not have to resist. My code obligates me to cooperate with you for one day. After, I must return to my investigation."

"I… won't be able to release you that soon."

"You won't be able to stop me." She said that without any emotion. Damn that's a bit creepy.

"I think I've an idea that should leave you both happy. And alive. My squad and I can investigate in your place."

"Yes. Do this, and I will join you. The code shall be satisfied, and the Detective will be able to release me."

"Thank the goddess," Anaya whispered.

"Any leads to start with?"

"The Volus merchant, Pitne For, is tied to this. Eclipse mercs are trying to kill him. He may know a way into the Eclipse Base." Hm, maybe I can still get her help for that. I am a Spectre after all. Maybe I can pull some strings that gets Anaya off the hook. I'll worry about that after I get information out of Pitne.

"Well. I've got to get back to my station. And… I guess I've got to take you with me," Anaya stated, facing Samara.

"Of course." Given that Pitne was still back by the station, the lot of us began returning together. Samara turned to me as we walked. "You did not speak your name."

"Oh, suppose I didn't. Commander John Shepard," I introduced.

"I have heard your name before. You seem noble."

"Thank you, Justicar." She had nothing further to say, and we returned to the Precinct. Plenty of eyes were on Samara, and Anaya pointed out Pitne for us, the Volus she had ordered to remain when we first arrived. The two Asari went inside the Precinct, and we approached Pitne. The Volus was using a data pad by a few supply crates I'd assume to be his. He noticed our approach but didn't suspect our purpose.

"Hello, Earth-Clan," he began, correctly assuming I was the lead. "If you're interested in weapons, I have a fine selection. Unfortunately, I am not open for business currently."

"What about information?" I made him nervous, but he tried to hide it.

"I'm not sure what you mean, Earth-Clan. If you're looking for private information, I don't disclose that to strangers." I squatted down to his height.

"Look Pitne, I know the Eclipse want your ass mounted on their wall. I need your help to break into their base. They won't be concerned about you if they have a fireteam shooting their base up, will they?" He took a series of deep breaths and thought.

"Yes, yes, you're right, Earth-Clan. I'm desperate. First, angry mercs, and now a Justicar is here. I smuggled a chemical onto Illium, not unlike Red-sand. It boosts biotic powers in combat, but it is also more toxic than Red-sand. Minagen X3. Prolonged exposure, even under a minute, can be debilitating if not lethal. I may have… forgotten to mention that to the Eclipse. Now they wish to kill me, and have already killed my partner." Scum, but at least it was mercs he screwed over.

"Tell me about their base."

"It's a series of docking bays where the Eclipse keep their private ships. They're well-armed and they have mechs. I even saw a Gunship when I was there. And all fully fledged members are murderers. It's part of their initiation. You want in, don't you?"

"Perceptive."

"I happen to have a pass card they issued me to bring my goods in. Well, I had to return that one. But…" he pulled a card out of his pocket. "I happened to make a copy." He paused. Bastard's really going to try and make some creds out of this? I just raised an eyebrow. "Take it," he muttered.

"Pleasure doing business with you. But just how do I access their base?"

"The same loading bay my partner was murdered in. There is an elevator that requires a key card such as this." We took our leave of the merchant. But we weren't going to the base yet.

"You record that?" I asked Garrus. My helmet had been off while we were still in the civilian area. It can't record when it's not on.

"Visor passively saves everything in the past hour. And now…" he typed at his Omni-tool. "Permanently saved."

"Send it to me, and wait here. I'm going to see Anaya."

"Surely giving her evidence on the Volus can wait," Miranda questioned.

"It can, but that's not what I'm going there for," I answered, saying nothing else while I entered the Precinct, making my way to Anaya's office. Samara was sitting cross-legged on the floor.

"Shepard? What are you doing here so soon?" Anaya asked, surprised.

"Two things. First, a gift," I sent her Garrus' video file and she watched over it. As soon as it finished, she made a call.

"Send someone to go take Pitne For into custody. Just got a confession from him." The call ended just as quickly, and she turned her attention back to me. "Thanks, but what's the second thing? I can't release Samara just because you did me a favor."

"I know. Which is why I'm going to suggest something else. Something backed by my Spectre status. Release her into my custody, like I'm a parole officer. A careless one letting her have a gun, and bringing her on a tour of a nearby Eclipse base. Go ahead, argue it," I encouraged with a wink. All part of a show for her superiors. She caught on and grinned.

"Oh, Spectre, sir, I have my orders. She must stay-" she exaggerated her tone.

"Now, now, Detective. I am ordering you to comply. If your superiors have a problem, they can complain to the Council." I might be crazy, but I swear I saw the ghost of a smirk on Samara's face as if she was enjoying the display.

"Very well. Justicar, I am placing you under Shepard's custody."

"Thank you for your cooperation. Samara?" the Justicar stood. "Any sort of ground rules I should expect while we're working together here?"

"I have not sworn myself to your service and thus will not follow your orders. However, as we are working together, I will remain near the group and am not opposed to synergy with your own biotics. If your actions are unjust, I will be forced to turn against you." That's a bit uncomfortable. Especially for the future.

"What's likely to happen here that could break your code?"

"Murder of innocents, theft, even of the contraband, torture and rape, bribery, and knowingly allowing criminals safe passage."

"Oh. It seems we won't have any issues then. Come on, let's get you situated with the others."

"Good luck, Shepard. Justicar," Anaya stated as we left, I thanked her, Samara nodded.

"Shepard, I am curious. Why did you come and claim custody?" she questioned.

"You heard Pitne For's description of the base. My team and I may be able to handle it, sure, but I think your help here could be valuable. Besides, if you will be joining my team, I want to know precisely what I'm working with," I explained.

"That is wise of you." We exited the Precinct, Tali and Miranda were both surprised to see Samara. Garrus I think suspected this, and Grunt didn't care.

"Everyone, Samara has been placed in my custody. Go ahead, introduce yourselves."

"Garrus Vakarian, ex-C-Sec detective, and old friend of Shepard."

"Miranda Lawson, XO of the Normandy, and the only effective biotic present, aside from yourself."

"Effective?" Samara asked.

"She means me," I answered. "I've got an experimental implant that's making me biotic, but I'm not ready to use them in combat yet."

"I see. Perhaps I shall pass on some of my experience to you- if I deem you worthy."

"I'd never turn down the help." The introductions continued.

"Tali'Zorah vas Neema. I also was with Shepard against Saren."

"A descendant of Clan Zorah? Yours was a strong, yet wise and graceful clan."

"I am Grunt. I would be eager to test myself against you in battle one day. To… spar, as the Turian said."

"It has been some time since I trained against Krogan. Yet I sense a youthful ignorance in you. My victory is assured, but you will learn."

"We'll see," Grunt muttered.

"Now, how about we go fight some mercs before thinking about fighting each other, hm?" I suggested. "Samara, I understand you might prefer your biotics, but I'd rather have my allies remain armed. Just to be safe. Here," I offered her my pistol. "Borrow this?"

"I will have no need of it, but very well," Samara accepted the pistol, and we made our way to the elevator Pitne told us about. It was locked down but with a slot to slide a keycard. I find it funny that a group as tech savvy as the eclipse went back to using physical key cards as part of their security. Nonetheless, the elevator opened, and we stepped inside. There were no buttons to select a destination, but it still had one and started making its way up. We readied our weapons, but Samara glowed blue, the weapon, and her hands, remaining by her thighs. The elevator came to a stop and its door opened for a singular LOKI mech standing guard. A single shot from my Mattock put it down, but no doubt it's already alerted the system to our presence. We walked in formation by the door out, while Samara just stood in the doorway, forming a barrier in front of her. I see. I opened the door and the barrier took the door's place. An Asari and three LOKI mechs were already firing at the barrier from the moment the door began opening. There were strange, brown canisters littering the docking bay, among other more standard crates. With her other hand, Samara picked up one of the mechs behind the Asari, and slammed it forward into her back, then lifting it up again to knock down the other two. The barrier dissipated, and we moved forward, finishing them off.

"Nice work," Garrus remarked.

"Shepard, I believe those canisters are the Minagen X3. I believe we could use them as a form of crowd control. Our own filters will keep us safe, after all."

"Samara? Would you have a problem with that?"

"These Eclipse sisters are murderers. I am to show them no mercy," she answered calmly. Just at that moment, a small fireteam of Mercs came through a door at the far end of the loading bay, clearly still not quite sure what was going on, just knowing that there were intruders. Samara took one of the canisters in her biotics and hurled it at the mercs, it broke on impact, spreading the chemical amongst them. Not all of them wore helmets. Those who didn't scream as the chemicals caused them pain, killing them. I… was not thinking about using it so directly, but rather to trap them in the open. Chemical weapons never sat right with me. Maybe that still makes me a hypocrite for suggesting its use in combat, but… shit.

"Got the survivors on thermals," Garrus stated before a shot rang out killing one, and another followed, killing the second. I just shook my head, shoving that conflict to the back of my mind, and we pushed on. Samara used her biotics to enclose the toxins in a small bubble, then moved it into a corner away from us, and released it, allowing her own passage. Gotta say, her use of biotics makes me wonder if she's actually using the Force or some shit. Justicar or Jedi? The bodies on the ground had distinct differences. For some, the armor was clean, and while it may have had marks and scars, it was professional. While the pair without helmets had cheap armor with the Eclipse logo crudely painted on it. That's the difference between the Initiates and the Fully-Fledged. We passed through where that fireteam originally came from just in time to see a door close. I think someone just ran inside. And a runner is that much more amenable to questioning.

"Got a runner in here," I called out. "Samara? I know your code isn't much for mercy, but let us handle this? I think Anaya would be happy to have a survivor for questioning."

"Very well, Shepard. The code permits criminals to live in exchange for information. Though they shall die after they have given the information. If the Detective is the one who has questions, it seems I will have business that will excuse me from this punishment."

The more I hear about how… adherent she is to the code, the less I like the code. The other five of us took positions at the door.

"Grunt, when I give the signal, charge in, knock the merc to the ground, pin them, but don't kill them. Understand?"

"What's the signal?"

"Either me shooting a gun out of someone's hand or I just tell you through squad comms." Grunt huffed, his signal of understanding. I opened the door and we stormed in, checking our corners. Grunt towering behind me, ready to charge at a moment's notice. The room was in two parts, a wall almost down the middle with a gap in the wall closer to the far side to the other half of the room. There was a gun on the floor, a Tempest SMG on the ground beside the console. My helmet was allowing me to hear what normally would be much harder to hear. The nervous breathing of a woman and it sounded like it was coming from right by the gun. The others heard it too, but Grunt didn't need his helmet for that.

"Don't even think about it," I called out, shooting the tempest, both destroying it and scattering its pieces across the room. "Not yet, Grunt," I stopped the Krogan.

"Wait! Stop!" the Asari merc stood with her hands in the air. And wearing the uniform of a true Eclipse sister. "I didn't fire my weapon once! I ran the moment that canister was flying towards us!"

"They didn't shoot either," I remarked.

"Goddess," she murmured. "I'm not one of them! I'm new! I thought being Elnora the mercenary would be cool… but I didn't know what they were really like!" Pity. Another Asari maiden who gets in with the wrong crowd with romanticized views of filthy occupations, and becomes not only a murderer but a liar. And it's about to ruin her life. Her hand started to drift to her waist. I see that shotgun on your back. Thanks for pointing it out for me. I pretended like I didn't until she started to bring it up. I aimed and fired in a flash, the round impacting her shotgun, knocking it out of her hands, and Grunt charging on cue. He knocked her to the ground and pinned her under his boot.

"Free tip for you, Elnora. Never pull your gun out when you're outnumbered. Especially when they all have shields. Another tip for you? Don't lie about being an initiate when your armor is clearly that of a true member. You'll have plenty to think about it all behind a cell."

"Screw that bastard, and screw you," she snarled, feebly trying to push Grunt's foot off of her chest.

"Miranda, cuff her, bring her to the crime scene back down, regroup with us," I ordered. Miranda nodded and Garrus gave her a pair of Omni-cuffs. She tries to struggle, it'll both shock her, and burn her wrists. Miranda took a firm hold of Elnora's hands, and Grunt kicked her over onto her stomach. Miranda closed the loops around the Asari's wrists and activated the cuffs. I handed Miranda the keycard, and with her own pistol out, dragged Elnora to her feet and started shoving her along.

"Shall we?" Samara asked as Miranda went on her way, baggage in tow. I nodded, and we made our way up the staircase beside the room Elnora hid in. Another door waiting at the top. A little antechamber before the loading bay around the corner. "I shall provide another barrier. Prepare yourselves."

"Just don't overexert yourself. No idea how long we'll be fighting, I warned."

"I have made active combat use of my biotics for over five hundred years, Commander. Your concern is appreciated but not necessary." I nodded, and we readied our weapons. Except for Tali, who instead threw out a small disk which formed into a ball of the same rapid and miniature fabrication of our Omni-tools. A combat drone. And this one was pink in color.

"Go for the optics, Chatika," she stated, petting the top of the drone. It chirped, and sparks flew out of the orb of its "face." "Good girl." I've got a few questions for her later. Samara glowed blue, Tali and her drone held back, and we stepped forward as the barrier formed. The drone dashing past and through our legs. Four LOKI mechs, no Eclipse sisters just yet, were blasting away at the barrier. And as the drone zipped by, the LOKI's still viewed us as priority targets. The drone aimed and fired a bolt of electricity right at, who would have guessed? One of the mechs' optics, frying the circuits in the drone's head, causing it to collapse, 'dead.' The drone repeated the process for the remaining three. It returned to Tali, the drone's body dissipating as the small disk that housed the actual core of the drone returned to Tali's hand, chirping again. "Good girl, Chatika! Such a good girl," she cooed. Garrus snorted.

"What?" she questioned.

"Nothing, let's just keep moving," I responded in his place. Damn it, Garrus was about to make me laugh if he broke first. We exited the antechamber, continuing to make our way through. No Eclipse mercs just yet, I think they just sacrificed those mechs to slow us down. Up another staircase. Samara gave us a barrier again. It was a long catwalk about… ten meters wide. Crates were distributed to make decent cover all the way through, but currently, two LOKI mechs kept us pinned in the doorway, unable to push and spread out into the cover they were by. Instead of waiting for Tali to get her drone again, Samara used her biotics to lift one and smash it into the other. She kept the barrier up while Grunt and I pushed up, finishing off the drones in the process. Two of the Eclipse in the backfired rockets our way. Samara stepped forward and to the side, then used her biotics to redirect the rockets. Not stopping them, but changing their paths in an upwards curve, sending them right back to the Eclipse. The heavies cried out before they got caught in the explosions. With the barrier gone, Garrus was able to line up a shot with his rifle, taking down another Eclipse by the back. Tali sent her drone out again, targeting an Initiate first. That shock sent her convulsing, falling rigid out of cover. It was simple to put her out of her misery. I counted three remaining. Garrus fired again. Make that two. I saw another chem canister by us.

"Samara! Can you give us a smokescreen?" She saw the merit, and provided, breaking the canister open in front of us, allowing Grunt and I to move up, while Garrus used his rifle's thermals to take out another. One left. Grunt snarled, and turned to his left, guess that's where the last is. I followed him out of the cloud to find he tackled a merc to the ground, then placed his shotgun just under their chin, pulling the trigger. Splattering the floor in chunks and purple Asari blood. Area clear. Samara moved the cloud of toxins aside, and we pushed forward again, up another flight of stairs. The fact they used people for that defense makes me believe they thought it might work. Maybe they'll be short-handed later. We came to a larger loading bay, and this time, we were able to begin spreading out into cover much easier. And I found out why. A gunship had just been released from a dock and flew off. A handful of LOKI mechs waiting.

"Think that had the leader?" I asked.

"Knowing the Eclipse? That's just going to be used in an ambush soon. They're stubborn with their territory," Garrus explained.

"Hope you're not just getting nervous about it buddy," I remarked.

"I'm not against getting more battle scars but I really hope the universe can wait until it's fully healed before giving me another one." We kept moving, passing by an Eclipse terminal.

"That might be linked to their database. I'll see if I can get any intel," Tali stated, halting us.

"Get a perimeter," I ordered and waited for the results. Tali was at it for five minutes, getting into their systems had only taken one.

"I'm not getting anything on their trafficking, but I searched both Pitne For and Elnora in the database. The Volus sold… two-thousand units of Minagen X3 to the Eclipse, and six-hundred units of Red Sand. As for Elnora, she recently made an audio file. Here." Tali played it.

"Well, it's official," a cheery Asari voice perked up. "Little baby Elnora is finally a full-fledged Eclipse merc! I earned my uniform last night when I killed that ridiculous Volus. Up close, exploding rounds. Blew the little bastard's suit wide open! Hah!" she laughed. Fucking really, she laughed. "I can't wait to see some real action! Next time I go home, my friends are going to be so jealous!" Would they be so jealous if they learned she was a murderer, I wonder?

"Part of me wishes I let you at her, Samara," I muttered. She had no response. I commed Miranda.

"Status?" I asked.

"Just released her into police Custody. She got rowdy, or I'd have been done sooner," she answered.

"Good, we've been making progress. Sending you some data files, transfer them to the police."

"Right away, Shepard. I'll regroup shortly." We kept moving forward through a few hallways until we were at a bridge connecting this tower of the complex and the next tower of the same.

"If there's any time for that ambush…" Garrus trailed off. I got my rocket launcher ready, and Samara glowed bright blue.

"Be at ease. I shall handle this. Enter cover," she stated. Garrus, Tali, and I shared glances, but we did as suggested. I had to order Grunt to do the same, then he did. Samara stood stoically in the center, glowing blue with a barrier to protect her. I saw a speck in the distance. Getting closer, and fast. Samara readied her right hand, and as soon as the gunship was between the towers of the complex, she reached out with her biotics and pulled it to our left. Samara was smart with how she did it. She didn't fight its momentum, just like with the rockets, she redirected it. Instead of speeding along in a strafing run straight forward, it was now a strafing run at a diagonal, and that sent it crashing into the building. Grunt broke the following silence by bellowing with laughter.

"I want to do that!" he exclaimed, still laughing.

"Why couldn't she have been there to rescue my ass?" Garrus joked, recomposing himself.

"Is it… is it possible for a man to orgasm by witnessing an act of destruction? Because I'm pretty sure I just did."

"Keelah, Shepard!" I snapped Tali out of that surprise.

"I'm a simple man with simple tastes," I shrugged.

"Let's just… keep going. Can we? Please?" she pleaded. So we did. In the next corridor on the other side of the bridge, at the far end was a Volus standing at… a snack machine. He nearly tripped over himself turning to see what was making all those footsteps and wobbled forward as if to get a better look, but just bumped right into my leg, where he recoiled, cried out, and fell on his ass with his back to the snack machine. He got to his feet. His suit was white at the plates and black at the softer, flexible joints.

"I… am a biotic god!" he began, a faint biotic aura flaring. What? "For I think things, and they happen! Fear me lesser creatures, for I am biotics made flesh!" Well. I've seen this before. Red Sand.

"Come on, little guy. You need help."

"You need help! You stand before the mightiest biotic ever! Yes, the Asari injecting so many drugs into me was terrifying. But then I began to smell my greatness. They may laugh when I fall over, but they don't know what I know in my head. That I know I am amazingly powerful." He lifted a fist to Tali, biotics flaring. "Fear me!" Tali just glanced at us and began laughing, keeping it on our comms. "Yes, tremble in your silence," he continued. Causing her to laugh louder.

"Look, where did you come from?" I didn't let her laughter infect me. Not yet.

"When I was mortal, I worked for Pitne For. Poor soul is probably terrified that I have not returned."

"Pitne For's just been trying to leave the planet," Garrus remarked.

"Like a coward," Grunt added.

"A coward indeed. I will wreak a just revenge upon his people! But first… the leader of these mercenaries is in the next room. I shall toss Wasea about like a rag doll!" he began to walk to the next room he meant. Nope, not having him waddle around a firefight. So, I lifted my foot, and gently kicked his back. He fell over flat on his face. Slowly, rolled over. Dazed. "But… great wind! Biotic God! I'm… I…" he took an unusually deep breath. "What was I saying? I'm tired…"

"You were saying how you were going to take a nap."

"Oh. That sounds nice. I'll nap…" he smacked his lips, and the sound went through his vocalizer. "I'll nap. Destroy the universe… later…" His head lolled to the side, and there was snoring.

"So much for godhood," Garrus remarked.

"Miranda, status?"

"Running past the bodies you've left behind."

"Good, we're almost at their leader. When you get to a bridge with a crashed gunship you're almost at us. Try not to trip over the drugged Volus."

"The what? Never mind, I'll be there in a minute."

"Samara? Wait?"

"Yes, a minute is acceptable." Miranda was right on time. She readied her weapon with us, and we approached the door. Samara gave us another barrier. Wasea, I'd assume, was standing at a desk in the back of the room. Crates were strewn about, and the support pillars would make good cover. There was also about two fireteams worth of Eclipse in there. But not firing yet. We began to spread towards cover, Samara remaining in the center with her barrier now just around herself. Wasea had a drink in one hand, and a data pad in the other. She looked mighty pissed to see us. She took a swig of her drink, then tossed it aside, setting the data pad down.

"Everything's gone to hell since we smuggled that filthy creature off-world," she grimaced at the description. "First, this Justicar. Then, you. Whoever the fuck you are. You come into my base of operations, and wreak hello my people, my mechs, my fucking gunship? I'm going to take pleasure in turning your head into a pulpy mass," she growled, and flared with biotics, launching a container of Minagen at Samara, who with her other hand, flicked it back towards the mercs on the right side. Half of them were stupid enough to not have helmets. Miranda used her own biotics to fling another at the other group. This alone makes the gunfight that much easier.

"Do you even know what you're getting into, helping this Justicar? You're up to your neck in terrors straight out of your nightmares!" Wasea screamed. Lady, if you only knew about the nightmares That Prothean Beacon still gives me. Samara strode forward, ignoring all the mercs aside from Wasea. We took care of them. With her biotics, Samara virtually slapped the weapon out of her hands, then slammed her upwards into the ceiling, releasing her.

"Fuck you for making that monster. Fuck you for everything," Wasea snarled. Whatever that means, I think that stung the Justicar a little. She hesitated.

"Find peace in the embrace of the Goddess."

She snapped her neck beneath her boot. Tali got a hold of Wasea's data pad, but apparently, Wasea had left it unlocked.

"It doesn't give a name, but it's obvious from the text here that your target, Samara, left on the AML Demeter. I'll bring this aboard and try to find its destination," Tali stated.

"Thank you, Tali'Zorah. Shepard, let us return to the Detective and inform her that my business here is concluded. While I may be in your custody, it will put her and her superiors at ease."

"Sure. Our shuttle is back there anyway." Samara nodded in reply. We made our way back through the carnage, back to the elevator. Back through the crime scene, to the Precinct. The cops inside were surprised to see us again and Anaya was already outside her office.

"You get what you needed, Justicar?"

"I did, Detective."

"Then I wish you luck on your investigation, Justicar," Anaya allowed a grin. "It's been an honor having you in here. And it's nice you didn't kill me, too."

"It is."

"Do you have any preparations before coming aboard, Samara?" I asked.

"Only one. I must be sworn to your service so that I am never forced to choose between your orders and the Code." Samara closed her eyes, and when they opened, they glowed. Not the black eyes I saw when Liara melded with my mind, but, like a white light. She closed her eyes again and got onto a knee, both fists on the floor. Anaya, and almost every other Asari in the Precinct watched, eyes wide. "By the Code, I will serve you, Shepard. Your choices are my choices, your morals are my morals. Your wishes are my code." She biotics flared and died, and she stood.

"Well, I'll be damned…" Anaya whispered. Samara turned to me.

"If you make me do anything extremely dishonorable, I may need to kill you when I am released from my oath. But if you command me to show mercy when my code would not, that will remain acceptable."

"Samara, this is… clearly a very personal and important decision. I'm honored."

"Truly, the life of a Justicar can get lonely. I admit I am looking forward to serving with a company of honorable heroes." Hm, put it like that, this sounds like a medieval adventure novel. "Shall we return?"

"Let's go. Good to have you on the team, Justicar."


	26. The Assassin

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: HIGH PRIORITY: All right, everyone. So, I'm posting this after having a bit of an emotional breakdown and a much needed heart-to-heart with parents much better than a sad, broken little man like myself could ever deserve. I'm going back to therapy, and, partially related, but the real reason for this author's note, is that I need to get some of my (academic) shit back together. Ease my burden. So. I'm going to need to push my upload schedule once again. I can guarantee from this point forward a chapter every other week. So, post a week, don't post, post a week, etc. However, it's not impossible that sometimes, I might be able to squeeze in another chapter as well. Whether this will come in the form of a double upload, or just one gets uploaded early, I'm not sure yet. Another good thing you can take from this, is that I'll finally be able to have a more reliable time to work on that Commissioned Andromeda One-shot I have (and the one that I got inspired for while planning it out). Might, MIGHT, even start making a few trilogy ones here and there this early, but I won't bank on it yet. So, apologies for the schedule change, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!  
**

 **Also, advice for any of you going to college in the future. NEVER, and I mean NEVER take online classes.**

 **Commander John Shepard**

We were all in the shuttle on our way back to the Normandy when I got a message from Liara.

 _Congratulations on getting Samara's help. Just be careful, the Eclipse will not take kindly to your attack. I have found information on Thane Krios. His primary contact for this hit, and main source of information, is a woman named Seryna, she used to work for Nassana and grew tired of her… deeds. My people approached her and explained the situation. She was eager to help upon learning our interests were aligned. Nassana is paranoid and has a large security detail of Eclipse, and has turned her penthouse in Dantius towers into a kind of fortress. Thane will likely infiltrate through the second tower which is still under construction. When it gets darker in a few hours, meet her in my offices. She'll be your guide to the best place to infiltrate the tower, and provide inconspicuous transport. It has to be tonight, that's when Thane is making his move._

A few hours, good. Enough time to speak with Samara and make sure everything about the reality of this situation is understood and acceptable.

"Everyone, just heard back from Liara about our next recruit. He'll be making his move in a few hours, and Liara's arranged for subtle transport. When we get back, get a bite to eat, take a power nap, whatever. Just stay ready. No guarantee you'll be on the team, but better ready than not.

"And yet, I get the feeling it is a guarantee for Tali and I," Garrus remarked.

"What can I say? I like having you both around." The Normandy's dock came into view, and the shuttle slowed, moving to enter the Normandy's cargo bay. "Samara, if you wouldn't mind, could you follow me to my quarters? I want to get you up to speed on everything."

"Of course, Shepard," she nodded. The shuttle touched down, the doors opened, and we all entered the elevator. It stopped at the crew deck, leaving Samara and I alone on the way up to my quarters. It was quiet. The elevator finished its journey, and we entered my quarters. I did notice that Samara's eyes, perhaps just naturally, rapidly scanned the room, mapping it. I gestured at my sofa and she took a seat, sitting straight up, ridged.

"Want anything to drink?" I offered.

"Water, thank you." I picked out a bottle for her, and for me… screw it, beer. I handed her the water and cracked open my beer as I took a seat, and a swig.

"So, you remember the Geth attack on the Citadel two years ago?" I began. She nodded. "And the Geth Dreadnought? Saren?"

"Yes, I have heard much about Saren, even before his cooperation with the Geth. If not for my current target, perhaps he would have been my next quarry."

"Yeah, he was a dick alright. Anyways, Saren was just a puppet, almost literally. As are the Collectors. They both share the same puppet masters. The Reapers. The Geth dreadnought was in fact one of them. They're an ancient race of AI inhabiting starships that, we're still not quite sure why, wipe out all intelligent life every fifty thousand years. They wiped out the Protheans, and I've no idea how many before them. We stopped their main plan of attack those two years ago, but now they're working on their plan B. These Collectors and the abductions are part of it."

"You seem certain. How?" she asked.

"On Eden Prime, a Prothean beacon burned a message, and images, into my brain. It took a while before it was able to be clear. They left behind a VI that explained what it could. Then a VI on Illos explained more. In addition, I spoke to Sovereign itself, the Reaper. Saren even shot himself to get rid of its influence on his mind."

"I see." Oh. That's it? Just, 'I see?' Huh.

"Yes, well, I also need to explain to you everything going on with this ship. The people on it. This mission has put me in a spot that's a lot grayer than I'm usually happy with. Out of necessity, I have to work with an organization that has broken my own code, you could say, time and time again. And in the most extreme of ways. If not for this mission, I'd be taking the fight to them. I'm just as certain that your own code demands action against them. Would I be wrong?"

"What organization is this?" she asked.

"Cerberus."

"I have heard of them, but their actions in Asari space have been limited. Thus, I have not heard as much as you perhaps have experienced. Regardless, necessity stays your hand and that of swift judgement. This I understand. And my oath bounds me to your code. If you stay your hand, I shall stay mine."

"Thanks. I'll send you copies of my old mission reports against them. You still deserve to know if you're working alongside them. Now. The general crew is split. Some forsook Cerberus once they heard my stories, some had been with them for too long to just believe me like that. All of them have limited experience or owe Cerberus. I imagine I'll find something that will change their minds during this mission. As to specific… people on board? What does your Code say about artificial intelligence?"

"The Code predates the concept of AI and not once in its long history has it been adapted. The rare retired Justicar and Asari philosophers have debated on how best to interpret the Code in that manner, even before we left Thessia. It may be clear and concise, but AI remains questionable. Does it fall under the category of living, sentient beings, or no?"

"Then you have no issue with there being a Cerberus, shackled AI aboard this ship?"

"Define shackled."

"Hardware blocks that lock EDI into certain systems and prevents her from taking certain actions or giving away certain information."

"I will meditate on it, but rest assured, without your approval, I shall not slay- or free, this, EDI."

"Good to hear. Finally, a few members of the ground team I need to make sure you can cooperate with. Zaeed Massani. Bounty hunter, merc. Doesn't kill kids and pregnant women, but I don't know too much about his contracts in the past."

"Without the oath, I may well have to end his life."

"Thought so. You won't kill him if he's around though when the oath is gone though, right?"

"That will depend on his actions while we are colleagues."

"Fair enough. So, our next recruit is a Drell Assassin, Thane Krios."

"His name is unfamiliar to me, so I shall inquire on his past contracts. If he served as an Assassin to the Hanar Primacy, the death of his targets would have been just." Something to ask Thane about when he's on board.

"Kasumi Goto. Human with a bit of Kleptomania? She's a thief, but I don't think she's out to hurt people. And I really doubt she steals from anyone but the rich."

"The Code does not accept those as excuses for her actions. If she proves herself a good woman, I will not end her, or hunt her down once my oath to you is complete."

"Also fair enough, I suppose. Finally, we have Jack. Woman covered in tattoos. A powerful biotic, dangerous. She was aboard the prison ship purgatory in cryo, even had the Warden scared. Her list of crimes was not short, and rather varied. But Cerberus did something to her. I don't know what, I don't know when, but I think she was young when it happened. She told me that she views every death that's not her as upping her chances at survival. That leads me to believe that she believes her way of survival is the only way. Maybe if she's proved wrong, she'll change," I explained. Samara paused.

"Shepard, allow me to speak with Jack. The Code's solution would be swift and simple. But I am bound to you, and you wish to change and redeem her. Perhaps I could mentor her."

"I'll admit to some surprise, Samara. If you don't mind me asking, what makes you believe you can get through to her?"

"It… is not the first time I have dealt with young, hurt, hot-tempered women."

"Vague, but I won't pry. Thank you, Samara. Any other questions?"

"Will I be required for your next mission?"

"Maybe, you're absolutely a powerhouse, but I still need to see how Kasumi handles herself in a fight, and if you're just obliterating everything, I won't get to find out. Plus, I don't know how many people can fit in the transport Liara got for us."

"Very well. I assume I can find food on the crew deck?"

"And bathrooms, and sleeper pods."

"Is there a place where I can look out into the empty void as we travel? It would be a nice place to meditate."

"Starboard observation is quiet and has a library if you want to read anything."

"That will suffice. Thank you, Shepard."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

The transport that Liara had secured for us was a larger model of a skycar, more comparable to a van. But skyvan doesn't have a ring to it. Anyways, it would be large enough to fit five of us, plus our guide, Seryna. Grunt, however, would certainly not fit. So, Garrus, Tali, Kasumi, Jack, and myself. All of us were armed, armored, and ready. Of course. The main reason we weren't just taking one of our shuttles with a destination to land, is that seeing a shuttle would put the Eclipse security detail on high alert, making our entrance that must harder. As Liara requested, we went to her office and met with Seryna, who then led us to the skycar Liara had for us. I got in the passenger seat, the others in the back.

"So, how do you know so much about Nassana's security?" I asked.

"I used to run it. I learned she was killing people to cover up her secrets. Like hell would I confront her about it, so I left, keeping up a friendly façade. Thane turned out to be the best opportunity to send some justice her way."

"Know much about him?"

"Thane? Probably less than you, considering you're looking to make friends. But I do know that no one's paying him for this hit. Doing it on his own. Said he was restoring the balance of his life, whatever that means." Hm. Interesting. "Anyways, you probably already figured this, but you'll find most of your resistance by the penthouse. That's where Nassana keeps the ones who actually know what they're doing. Along with plenty more grunts to take the bullets." The skycar was moving quickly through the lanes, zooming past others and around buildings. No illegal actions, or anything too conspicuous, but not wasting any time either. "As you know, we're entering around the middle of the second tower. From there, make your way to the top, then cross the bridge. That'll put you at the penthouse level."

"Why waste time when we could just fly right to the top?" Jack questioned.

"In a skycar?" Seryna scoffed. "Even in an armored shuttle, she has mercs with rockets and itchy trigger fingers."

"Any other defenses to look out for?"

"The only things automated are the mechs, no turrets. And you don't need to worry about traps either. Civilian workers and indentured servants should all be clocked out by now. So, if it moves, and it's not a Drell, shoot." We were coming up on the towers, large skyscrapers. The top of the second tower only reached up to about the middle of the first, and the sun had already fallen beneath the horizon. The only scaffolding and clear signs of construction we could see on the exterior of the second tower were mostly around the fourth, and highest quarter of the building. We came down to a mostly finished landing pad outside. The construction was all solid, it just hadn't been decorated yet, and the entrance was just a glass pane rather than a door. They don't want anyone entering from there yet. Seryna set down and we disembarked.

"Good luck," she called out, the doors closing, and she sped off. Alright, is there another way in, or- A pair of Salarians were running, screaming, on the other side. Not towards us, but from the left to the right. LOKI mechs and a FENRIR followed, with gunfire. One of the Salarians took the bullet right into his back, blood green, like mucus, spraying out as he fell.

"The hell?" Kasumi exclaimed. Garrus and I readied our weapons immediately while Tali activated her Omni-tool. Garrus and I shot through the glass, blowing the heads off the two LOKI's, and with the glass shattered, Tali's overload was unobstructed to short out the FENRIR. Should be clear, and the Eclipse shouldn't have any conclusive idea what happened to them.

"Check him, I'll find the other," I ordered. Garrus approached the body on the ground, it wasn't moving. I checked the right, the other Salarian had also been shot, he had his back to the wall, blood wasn't pooling, not yet at least. He was still obviously bleeding, though. And alive. Wheezing.

"Help," he struggled. "I… I can't feel my legs. My chest is killing me…"

"I've got you. Where were you hit?"

"B-Back," he wheezed.

"I need to roll you onto your stomach, sorry." He was still wheezing but let me pull him from the wall and onto his stomach. Upper back. Definitely punctured a lung. I got out my medical kit from my waist, taking out the tools to remove the bullet. I kept pressure on the wound as I carefully dug the tools in. There it is, the metal shard. The Salarian was groaning in pain as I pulled it out. Lot more blood now. I applied a healthy dose of medigel. That'll close the wound, stop the bleeding, ease the pain, and seal the punctured lung for now... until a hospital can fix him up more permanently. His breathing eased, Garrus and the others joined me. Guess the other didn't make it. The surviving Salarian took a series of deep breaths, and I helped get him back up against the wall.

"Thank you."

"Did Nassana do this? Why?" I asked gently.

"It was her, but," he took another deep breath. "I don't know. We're just night workers. We didn't hear the mech's until they started shooting. Mercs said-" he coughed. "There was no time. Nassana wanted us out… immediately. Wait, where's Pazal?"

"I'm sorry, the bullet went straight through his heart," Garrus answered.

"No…" The Salarian murmured. "Damn it. There were other workers who ran. Help them."

"We will. I promise," I answered. "What's the fastest way up to the top of this tower?"

"There's a service elevator just a few stories up. It'll take you right up," he explained.

"Thanks. Hide or go to the landing pad, flag down help. Go," I urged. I helped him to his feet, and he carefully hobbled towards our improvised exit.

"Bet we're going to end up needing that Medi-Gel," Jack mumbled. I figure that she has more disagreements, but she understands that I play by a different set of rules, and knows better than to try and argue. At least in the field. We kept moving. Eclipse and Mechs were standing guard in a room ahead, construction supplies and materials out for the night, waiting for morning.

"Kasumi, show me what you can do. We'll be waiting for your signal, or gunfire, to move in," I ordered.

"On it, Shep," she answered, and activated her cloak, disappearing. I could still make out the very faint shimmers of her cloak, and it only got harder the further away she moved. A merc in the far back suddenly jerked, a hand shooting up to grab just in front of his throat, his head lifted up, and he was gently lowered to the ground by invisible hands. "Think I got it, but stay ready," Kasumi requested. I saw the end of a gun barrel light up from where I saw her, but no sound. Silencers. Since bullets aren't propelled by gunpowder explosions anymore, the noise that our little railguns create can actually be silenced. If you're holding the weapon, you'll hear a little _thwip,_ but nothing else. The bullet struck another Eclipse merc in the head, and exited from his forehead, judging by the blood spatter, and the next two rounds put down the LOKI mechs. Still completely unalerted.

"Good work, Kasumi. Now just to see how you act in a firefight," I remarked.

"Oh, I'll still be sneaky. But I'll be able to go a lot faster. Having someone shoot at you is a pretty good distraction."

"Hey! Matthews! Something wrong? Your comms cut- shit!" An Asari woman, another merc, had wandered over. And saw all of us standing amongst bodies. "We got intru-" Jack picked her up with her biotics and threw her off a ledge on her left, the Asari screaming as she fell. It seemed like a pair of elevator shafts, that hadn't had the elevators, or their shaft installed yet, just the gap.

"Well, that's one way to tell every merc below us that something's wrong," I grumbled. "Form up, move!" A fireteam of three more mercs and three LOKIs, combat ready, stepped out from the corridor on the opposite end of us. Using walls or the construction supplies present, we were able to take cover. Kasumi was already gone. "Take it easy, let's see what she can do." We remained in cover as the Eclipse were all unloading their clips. At the same time. Like idiots. I peeked my head up once or twice to make them think they were doing a good job, my shields taking a hit, but that's what they're for. The shooting stopped, and then there was a detonation, followed by merc's screaming, crying out. I looked up to see the LOKIs get shot down while the mercs had their hands against their eyes. Flashbang. Kasumi took them down.

"Am I just going to be handling every shootout this mission, Shep?" she joked.

"Next time, let's see how you do when you have to watch out for our shots too," I smirked.

"Maybe you should watch out for me instead," Kasumi retorted, keeping the hint of humor. I chuckled and led the squad forward. A service ramp took us up another two stories. There were some vents overhead.

"Hey, I think he went in here," a man's voice echoed through one of the vents.

"Well, go get him," a woman answered him. Mercs. I gestured for the others to secure the area, and I listened. Sounds like Thane's been spotted.

"You go," the man hesitated. I peeked up through the vent but saw nothing. It was well lit, too.

"Get your ass in there. Nassana's not paying you to stay around," the woman retorted, annoyed.

"Fine… but I-" He grunted as I heard something impact metal. Something was tossed inside the vents, and it tumbled through to this larger part, a body. I stepped back as it hit the floor, the arm was bent backward, broken, and the neck had been snapped. So, Thane's a marksman, but knows his hand-to-hand too. Any good assassin would have to. The sound of the body hitting the ground got everyone's attention, looking down at the body then right up at the vent.

"We're close. Keep moving and we can catch up," I stated, leading everyone along."

"The hell's going on? One report says that intruders are a few levels below us, another said one's a few above? Where the hell are they supposed to be?" a merc questioned from around a corner. Kasumi vanished, and we surged forward, securing cover before they were ready.

"You just had to open your big fucking mouth, didn't you, Heleen," a man grumbled. They began spreading out, but Garrus and I took one out each, Tali took out a third with her pistol, Jack slammed a fourth headfirst into the ceiling, then the floor, and three were still left. They had gotten into cover. No mechs this time, curiously. One of those still alive was an Asari, that means biotics. The two others wore helmets, one male one female. No idea if human or not, and if human, they could still be biotic. Kasumi wisely targeted the Asari, as just when she began to stand, an arm was twisted behind her back, and she was turned to face her allies, crying out in pain. Two shots, two headshots. Then the Asari's neck just opened, the thief's knife cloaked with her. The Asari tried to breathe, only catching her own blood, and slumped to the ground. Area clear. And the mercs had been guarding a service elevator.

"Hey, Shep, saw a locked door over here. You ask me? Strange they'd keep a door locked but not the elevator," Kasumi pointed out.

"Agreed. You and Tali open it up. Garrus, Jack, help me move some of these supplies to make good cover facing the elevator," I ordered. Stacks of metal sheets that would be used for walls and metal crates were placed to form essentially a long block of cover we'd be able to use.

"Shepard! Doors unlocked!" Tali called out.

"On my way. Garrus, Jack, keep eyes on the elevator." As I arrived, Kasumi and Tali opened the door. It was a supply closet, with three scared Salarians inside.

"Please don't kill us!" One with green skin and yellow construction clothing pleaded.

"Wait-wait-wait, look, they're not Eclipse," another, exclaimed. "Are you here to help us?"

"Not initially. Didn't expect civilians on the field. Here, follow me." They stuck close together, and I led them to the other side of the room. This way, if the elevator doors open by surprise, they'll at least be able to run away, rather than into a corner.

"Thank you. Just, thank you," one took a deep breath.

"I'm here looking for someone. Not one of the mercs. A Drell?" I asked.

"That must be the one who sealed us in the closet. When he found us, I thought he would kill us, but he just closed the door again and locked it." So, Thane doesn't want civvie casualties either. Good, good.

"Thanks. Head down a few stories to a landing pad. You should find another friend there."

"Yes, yes, thank you. Good luck, Human." They hurried off, and I returned to the elevator, and the others.

"Hey, Garrus, you bring any trip mines?"

"Course. I'll set it now," he answered, already moving to the elevator's exit, placing it on the outer part of the doorframe. The moment someone walks out, it blows. When he arms it, that is. First, I called the elevator, and retreated to cover as Garrus armed it remotely. The indicator on the elevator showed that currently, it was on the top floor. Speeding its way down. Kasumi was, again, gone. The indicator reached our level, and the elevator chimed. The door opened

A Krogan armed with an MG began unloading the living fuck out of his gun, and two Eclipse mercs armed with rifles were present. But the Krogan's fire forced me to immediately get back into cover.

"Eat tungsten and die!" the Krogan laughed. Then, an explosion, they set off the mine. The gunfire stopped. The Krogan was in pieces, dismembered, the mercs in even worse condition. At least the elevator itself was still intact if the walls out here were a bit warped. It's just mandatory safeties that keep the elevators resilient.

"Well. This is… grisly," Kasumi murmured, decloaking.

"Inside. I'd turn off your olfactory filters if I were you," I suggested. We entered, and… no, not the highest level. Let's go with… three below. I pressed the button, the door closed, and the elevator shot up. It was silent for the duration, and the doors opened. An Eclipse merc, male, had his back to us, looking out a window. He was on the comms.

"Don't worry about it," he continued his conversation.

"Hold fire," I ordered, and slowly stepped forward, approaching him from behind.

"We don't need any reinforcements," he paced in front of the window. "I'll take care of it. It's under control. I'll go down there myself." He paused. "Yeah, yeah. I'll report in when I'm done. Out."

"Turn around. Slowly." I poked his back with my rifle.

"Well shit," he murmured. He did as he was told, putting his hands in the air.

"You see the Assassin?"

"Why are you looking for him," he took a step back, leaning back. "You're not one of Nassana's mercs. Who are you?"

"I think you already know all you need to. You answer my questions, and… well… look over your shoulder." He did, glancing over his shoulder, and becoming very aware of that window. And the fall." By the time he looked back at me, I had taken a few steps forward. He reacted by taking a few more steps back, his back pressing against the glass.

"Look pal, even if I knew where he was, I wouldn't tell you." Hm, this guy's got balls. I can respect that.

"Is that really going to be your answer?" He crossed his arms over his chest.

"I've got nothing else to say. You shoot me, my team's right through there," he nodded his head to one of the doors by the elevator. "They'll be all over you."

"I wouldn't have to shoot you. I think that should be obvious." I grabbed him by the collar and pushed him against the glass. Not enough to crack it right away, but then I kept adding force. It began to crack. "Is she really worth dying for?" I asked, then pulled him back, staggering him and making him fall to his hands and knees.

"You make a good point," he regained his composure half-way through. "Look, last confirmation was that he was down on the mezzanine. If you came from that elevator, hell, maybe he rode the elevator on top of you. Teams on the bridge think they saw him. No one knows for sure."

"Well that's all useless," Jack grumbled.

"Tali, wipe his Omni-tool comms. You, give me your helmet."

"My helmet? Why?"

"It's got its own comm unit. And a tracker. I don't want to give them too much suspicion right now. Besides, think the Eclipse will take kindly knowing you bailed on this?"

"...Another good point. Fine." He tore off his helmet and let Tali wipe his Omni-tool. The man was probably in his thirties, growing out his beard. Lighter skin, darker hair. Tali finished, and the man made his way to the service elevator. I threw the helmet out the window, leaving a sizeable hole. The wind was strong out there. The team split up, Garrus and Jack went through the door to the left of the elevator, Tali and I took the right. Kasumi cloaked and was looking for a position. The Eclipse were not aware of us, not yet. One was on the comms.

"He's everywhere," a male spoke. We couldn't hear the response. Either Nassana or an Officer of some sort. "We've got reports of him on multiple levels. We think he's traveling through the ducts…"

"In position, Shep. Five mercs, three LOKIs., two FENRIRs," Kasumi called out.

"Understood," I answered.

"Get ready, Chatika," Tali called out her drone, but kept it on standby. "I'll start hacking into one of the LOKIs. And…" Tali finished typing at her Omni-tool. "Ready."

"Take control, then everyone open fire. Try to leave the hacked one be," I ordered. One of the LOKIs shuddered as if electrocuted, then raised its weapon and fired at one of the Eclipse, right in the back.

"The f-" they began before we unleashed hell. Chatika surged forward to take out the other mechs while we gunned down the mercs. It was over just as quickly as it began.

"So. Got another locked door, by the way," Kasumi remarked. "Open it." Kasumi nodded and jogged over. It was unlocked in moments. I stood in front of the door, it would only be a kind of closet below this large staircase. As soon as it opened, I had a gun pointed at my chest, a Salarian, panicked, was the wielder. Another nervous Salarian was behind him.

"Get back! Get back… I'll shoot!" His gun was shaking. A lot. "I don't want to hurt you. But I will. I said get back! I'll do it!" He probably won't, but let's just calm him down. "Please don't make me do it."

"Hey," I gently raised a hand. "We're only here to help. What's your name?"

"I… I- I'm Telon. Don't… come any closer."

"Telon. My name is Commander Shepard. I don't work with the mercs, and I don't want to hurt you. Put the gun down," I gently continued.

"I… ok… here…" he lowered the weapon. "I… don't… oh…" he put a hand to his forehead and then fainted.

"Telon!" the other ran over. "He's my brother," he explained checking him."

"Are you the ones who… shot the merc?" I followed the Salarian's eyes. There was a dead merc, his head blown open on the ground.

"Shot a lot today. But not that one."

"But… who did?"

"An Assassin targeting Nassana. We're here to recruit him for our mission. When your brother wakes up, use the service elevator to head down to the Mezzanine. Head to the landing pad. There's other survivors there."

"Thank you." We got moving again, up the ramp to the next level, and out to the building's exterior. No roof, no walls along the outer ledge.

"Jack, go wild, but careful. Try not to toss us, or Kasumi, off by accident," I ordered.

"Yeah, don't just toss cover or crates over. I tend to jump over them," Kasumi remarked. Jack just huffed. We moved forward.

"Forget the explosives, he's already past us!" a merc exclaimed. Some were still working on explosive canisters. Quickly, I opened fire. With just that one canister exploding, instantly killing some mercs, the shockwave sending others off the ledge, it caused a chain reaction along the explosives they had been setting up. Yeah, that's all the hostiles here dead. And a giant signal flare for the ones on the bridge. This series of detonations left holes in the floor, slowing us down as we maneuvered around. The bridge was straight ahead. It was crawling, and the far end had marksmen.

"Garrus, how bad is the wind?"

"Very. I can't hit them from here. Good news, neither can they. I'll check again about half-way."

"Got it. Jack, do your thing. Everyone else, stand back."

"Oh, hell yeah," she exclaimed, running forward, glowing blue. Every merc and mech in her way was literally just tossed aside. It reminded me of the aftermath we saw on Purgatory. She just kept running ahead, the snipers were either missing her, or her barriers were blocking the shots. We followed behind, Garrus stopping halfway to check his shots. He fired, aiming at the sniper on the right, but hitting the one on the left.

"I'll accept my trophy for Galaxy's best shot after the mission, thank you," he called out.

"Not until you and I have a little competition, buddy," I responded, still rushing forward. Seeing several more Eclipse bodies, including the other sniper, and mechs, being tossed away by Jack.

" _Hell fucking yeah!"_ Jack shouted. "Shepard! All clear!"

"Good work, Jack," I answered, and we made our way up to her. We had our way into the main tower, the penthouse level. Course, you don't enter her own penthouse from the bridge. It's… down this way, according to Seryna's intel. Strangely, no more Eclipse. We approached the door, the interface showing it was unlocked. Kasumi cloaked, and the rest of us got in a breaching formation. Jack just making a barrier. We opened the door, the Eclipse inside readied their weapons, an office. An Asari woman in a black formal dress was looking out the window, her back to us, but turned.

"What the hell is an N7 doing shooting up my property?" she questioned, furious and confused.

"Aw, you don't recognize me, Nassana? I'm hurt." That confused her more, but then it hit her, eyes going wide.

"Shepard? You're supposed to be dead." I took off my helmet, slowly, the mercs watching me carefully but Nassana allowing it. I was smirking.

"I got better."

"And now you're here to kill me," she frowned, angry.

"Believe it or not? I didn't come here to kill you. Not such a bad idea though, after what I've seen."

"Then what the _fuck_ did you come here for? Money? Weapons?" There was a thudding sound above, just barely audible, as she finished her statement. I noticed it, and it seems the Eclipse lieutenant did as well. Nassana noticed said lieutenant looking around rapidly. "What?" she asked, probably about to shoot something herself.

"I heard something."

"Damn it," she slammed a fist on her desk. "Check the other entrances," she ordered the other Eclipse. "You," she pointed at me. "Stay. Put." A Drell dropped down from the vents behind Nassana, and behind two of the Eclipse. Not making a sound. I wasn't even listening to Nassana as she continued. Thane targeted the Eclipse on his right first, snapping his neck instantly, with one hand around the merc's mouth. The other heard the snap and immediately received a throat punch, taking his pistol from the merc's thigh, shooting him and the Asari lieutenant right in the head. Nassana moved to shoot him herself, but he dropped the pistol, and instead spun hers around into his own grip, and into her stomach. He pulled the trigger. Her eyes went wide, and she gasped. Groaning in pain. Thane gently took hold of her and lay her down on the desk. Her eyes began to lull as Thane placed her hands upon one another, crossed over her chest. Respectfully. He stepped back from the body, clasping his own hands, and lowering his head, closing his eyes. His mouth was moving, but I couldn't see him.

"Holy. Shit. Alright, that was pretty badass," Jack remarked

"I am both aroused, and afraid," Kasumi added, decloaking. He still wasn't answering. Our weapons were already stowed.

"I… was hoping to talk to you?" I spoke loudly, clearly, stepping closer to the desk. Thane opened his eyes but kept his head low and hands clasped.

"I apologize. Prayers for the wicked must not be forsaken." His voice was low and raspy. Dry. A religious killer? I wonder what kind. History has seen plenty of the worst kind.

"Think she deserved it?"

"Not for her," Thane shook his head, and raised it. "For me." Oh. Not the answer I expected. He put his hands onto his hips, slowly walking around the desk. "The measure of an individual can be difficult to discern by actions alone. Take you, for instance. All this destruction… chaos. I was curious to see how far you'd go to find me." he was on the other side of the desk now. Nassana's body behind him. "Well… here I am." His suit was black, but it was open around his upper chest and down the middle to… just above where the navel would be in a Human.

"Like I said, I wanted to talk to you. I suppose it didn't take long for you to learn we were here."

"Yes. Your actions disrupted my plan, but proved a valuable distraction."

"Hm, well. Cutting to the chase. I need your help on a mission."

"Indeed?" Thane raised a brow.

"You hear about the Collectors and their recent abductions?"

"I know the Collectors by reputation, but, not their recent abductions of note."

"They're abducting entire Human colonies. The entire planet's worth. Freedom's Progress was them. So was Horizon, we just managed to stop that one in progress." Thane paused.

"I see." He walked around behind the desk again, looking out the window, hands clasped behind his back, which the center of his back was also revealed by his clothing. "You are going after them, then. Attacking the Collectors would require passing through Omega-4. No ship has ever returned from this.

"Yeah, I've heard 'that's impossible' quite a bit in the past," I remarked.

"Indeed you have, Commander Shepard. You have built a career on the impossible, he turned back with a slight smirk. Guess he heard Nassana give my name. He took a deep breath, looking back out the window again. "This was to be my last job."

"Why?"

"I'm dying."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Look man, I know this ain't a cliffhanger for anyone, but, come on, there's no better spot from a narrative perspective to end this chapter. It's just perfect.**


	27. Ambush

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys! Sorry if the beginning is iffy, but that's just kinda the problem to dal with when you end last chapter, on what's narratively a pretty nice spot, but, inconvienient otherwise. Still worth it though. Hope you enjoy! And also, the reason for the end stuff? River's idea. And yeah it means a good part of next chapter is gonna be free-hand too**

 **Commander John Shepard**

So, that had been a bombshell. Thane had gone on to explain, and reassure, why he was dying. He simply dropped the name, Kepral's Syndrome, and stated that it wasn't contagious, nor was it at a stage that would affect his work. Right, it's not quite common knowledge, given how few Drell are out there, and how it's also only a real problem for Drell who spend significant enough portions of their lives on Kahje. But it's still common enough amongst Drell themselves to make it noteworthy in N7 training. Mostly, in case you're ever fighting a Drell.

More relevant, and more important, Thane wasn't concerned with suicidal odds, but he was concerned about the lives of the colonists. "The universe is a dark place. I'm trying to make it brighter before I die," he said. Noble. He also said that he must atone for not being fast or strong enough to save the other innocents killed by Nassana today. I can understand why he takes that blame, even if it's not his. Thane had offered his hand.

He'd join us, free of charge.

With the recruitment complete, and the Eclipse bugging out without a client, we called the shuttle, taking a slight detour to Thane's safe-house so he could retrieve all of his gear, then back to the ship. It was getting late, but that only meant the sky lanes of Nos Astra would be getting more crowded as the night-life began. I took this time as a chance to explain to Thane the… complications of the current situation. Meaning, Cerberus. He calmly accepted everything he was told. When we did return to the ship, Miranda quickly got him logged, and he requested to use life-support as his room. Warm and dry after all. And after two combat missions today, Garrus, Tali, and myself were exhausted. The others who had seen action today? Tired. Introductions for Thane were just going to wait until the morning. So, I got a good night's sleep, but… something felt like it was missing. I had a pretty decent idea what that missing component was, or rather, who it was, but I opted not to dwell on that overnight. When I woke, I requested that all the ground team meet in the briefing room. Jack and Grunt were the last to arrive. I gestured for Thane to join me at the back of the room, facing the door.

"Everyone, meet Thane Krios. Our final recruit. Thane, your dossier described you as also being a skilled marksman in addition to your hand-to-hand, correct?"

"Correct, Shepard. Several of my contracts have been fulfilled from long distances. In addition," he glowed blue for a brief moment. A biotic as well. "My abilities are mild in their… manifestation, but I can use what I have well."

"Given the Collectors use barriers themselves, I'll happily take all the biotics I can get," I remarked. "So, going through with introductions. Thane, the ugly bastard of a Turian right there you might recognize is Garrus Vakarian. A good, old friend, my right-hand man, and a skilled marksman. Ex C-Sec as well.

"Why thank you, Shepard," Garrus smirked, and Thane nodded.

"Tali'Zorah, another good, old friend. Among other things," I added quickly, relatively quietly. Garrus snorted, and I noticed another… unsure, brow raise from Miranda. Tali just looked down, no doubt blushing, and wrung her hands. "Our tech expert and best hacker I've seen."

"I want to say you haven't seen me in action yet, but I don't want to ruin the moment either," Kasumi teased.

"But you did say it," Grunt responded, not following.

"Exactly," the thief giggled. Thane just nodded again, his hands together behind his back.

"Little Ms. Giggles is Kasumi Goto. Thief by trade, and infiltration specialist on this mission."

"Hi," Kasumi added, gleefully.

"The Krogan is Grunt. A few things still get over his head, and he's always looking to test himself. Don't be surprised if he wants to spar."

"Nothing gets over my head," Grunt grumbled. "I'm too fast. I'd catch it." I struggled to not let my grin turn into laughter.

"Whatever you say, Drax." Kasumi giggled again, getting the reference. Everyone else either looked confused or just ignored it.

"I would be happy to train with you, Grunt. I don't often get to practice with Krogan, not unless my life depends on it," Thane spoke.

"We've also got Jack, the other human you saw with us. A powerful biotic." She just huffed, arms crossed over her chest. "And real talkative. The Asari is Justicar Samara, another powerful biotic.

"Do you serve the Hanar Primacy with your actions?" she asked.

"They trained me under the terms of the Compact and I served them for a time, yes. I left to start a family, but eventually, found I knew nothing but. I returned to the skills I knew, sometimes for the Primacy, sometimes in contracts. However, the morals of my faith and those taught to me by the Primacy did join me," he explained.

He has a family? If he's not concerned with dying on them in this mission, maybe something happened to it.

"I see." Samara answered. I returned to the introductions.

"The Salarian is professor Mordin Solus. Former STG, skilled in combat, and a brilliant scientist, I believe specifically in genetics."

"Rasp in voice slightly deeper than most Drell. If most of life spent with Hanar primacy, must ask. Kepral's Syndrome?"

"The middle stages, yes. I assure you, it will not affect my work."

"Is that shit contagious?" Zaeed questioned, cautious.

"No, no," Mordin shook his head. "Affects Drell only. Drell native to arid environments. Kahje very humid, wet. Higher risk in Drell living on Kahje." The doc returned his attention to Thane. "Will still provide medications to ease and slow process."

"That is appreciated, Professor."

"Thanks for helping, Mordin. Thane, Mr. Germaphobe there is Zaeed Massani. I'm sure you're familiar with his name."

"I am."

"Yeah and I've heard yours before," the merc added.

"Closing up, we have Miranda the XO you met last night, and finally, Jacob Taylor, armory chief, biotic, soldier."

"I've heard plenty of stories, Krios," Jacob crossed his arms over his chest. "Sounds like you'll be an asset," he huffed. Hostility? "Can't say I'm comfortable having an assassin watch your back."

"I have accepted a contract. My arm is Shepard's," Thane stated calmly.

"Uh-huh. Until someone offers a bigger paycheck, right?"

"He's doing this for free, Jacob. He's not being paid a single chit. He wants to help the Colonists," I intervened. He still didn't look convinced.

"I don't like mercs. An assassin is just a precise merc."

"Oi, the fuck that's supposed to mean? I make my bullets count," Zaeed exclaimed.

"All right, all right, lock it up. Now that everyone knows everyone, I've got one more thing before I release you all for breakfast. We've finished our recruitments. That means regarding the Collectors, we're waiting to hear from TIM about any intel regarding safe passage through Omega-4, or the Collectors making a move. As it stands, I know that Zaeed and Kasumi both have business that, as part of their signing agreement, need to be completed before we go through that relay. If any of you have some other unfinished business, some loose ends you'd like tied, tell me, and I'll see what I can do. I want everyone focused with a clear head when we go through, whenever that might be. If all you want is some last party or night on the town, you just want to sneak away from the ship for a while to get laid, anything like that, no need to worry about letting me know. Before we do go through, I've got… leads on some hardware the Normandy could most certainly use. That'll require shore leave in a drydock while the Normandy gets worked on. That'll be your time for anything like that. Does anyone have anything they know of yet?" I asked. I've no doubt Miranda wants to hear more about those leads, but I suppose she's deciding against interrupting me.

"Yeah, I got something," Jack stated. "But like fuck am I telling where Cheerleader can hear. Or anyone else." Miranda glared at her. I nodded at Jack.

"Anyone else?" No one spoke. "Alright. If something crops up along the way, it's still fair game to bring up. We'll be on Illium for another day or two, maybe three, to help out our old friend Liara for some business, and a little bit of R&R for getting the whole team together. Miranda, arrange a limited shore leave set up for the general crew, some extra liberties thrown at Chakwas and Joker. I want everyone who leaves the ship to be ready to come back at a moment's notice. Ground team gets the whole time off unless I call for them on a mission. The main rule for everyone, don't go too far from the ship."

"Understood, Shepard," Miranda answered.

"Everyone but Jack, dismissed." They cleared out, Jack stayed.

"You know how far back my history with Cerberus goes?"

"All I know is that it goes back pretty far."

"To the beginning. They raised me. My first memory? My cell door in a Cerberus base." She looked down, angry. Cerberus screwing with kids, I saw the same during the Saren campaign.

"Two years ago, my team and I investigated the colony on Chasca. We found Cerberus turning the Colonists, even the children, into those Husk monstrosities. They had problems containing the husks. In one of the kid's blocks, the husks… broke out."

"Fucked up experiments. That's what they did to me. Minus the space zombie. It was torture. Tried to turn me into some… super-biotic." She huffed. "Guess they did. The doctors, other kids. They all hated me. Let me suffer." There was a hot fury rising, just barely contained.

"There were other kids?"

"Yeah, but I don't really know shit about them. They kept us separate. I know they hated me though, like everyone else there. When I broke out, I had to fight through them all." Oh. That's… not a pleasant image. But it also doesn't make sense. If other kids were at this facility, why would they try to keep another subject from escaping? "Killed all the kids, killed all the guards in my way. Got a shuttle off the ground, drifted until a freighter found me. They used me, sold me. Same shitty cycle for years."

Jesus.

"What is it that you want to do?" I asked.

"Those files? Found that facility. It's called Teltin, on Pragia. I want to go to the center, my cell and put down a big _fucking_ bomb, and watch from orbit when it goes to hell. And I want _cheerleader_ to see it all."

"Done," I didn't hesitate. Pragia isn't inhabited by civilians anyway. "It'll be tricky to get our hands on a bomb like what you want, but I've an idea. I promise you it'll be done before the relay, but if there's any time-sensitive requests, it'll have to be moved back in the queue."

"Define time sensitive."

"Like if we get a lead on the criminal Samara is hunting, or someone close to a crewmember is in danger."

"Fine. I'll take it."

 **Commander John Shepard**

After breakfast, Tali and Garrus joined me in my quarters. Tali because she'd get the hacks done faster than the rest of us, and Garrus I offered just in case he wanted to tag along. Of course, he was curious about what was going on with Liara. Once we were all sat down on my sofa, I started a vid-call with her. She answered just a few seconds later. Her blue and freckled face appearing on the screen of my omni-tool.

"Shepard, good morning. I trust the recruitments went well?" she asked.

"They did. We'll be here another couple of days. To help you and for some R&R. Also," I moved my arm so Liara could see Garrus and Tali. The latter waved while the former gave a nod.

"Good morning to both of you as well. Thanks for helping, So, I take it you want to know what I need from you?" she asked.

"That'll be it, yeah," I answered.

"Good. Just a moment," she looked away from the display, likely typing. She waited for a moment. "The line is secure, at least, as secure as I can make it. And your own systems, that is. So, the Shadow Broker's network on Illium has made several of the public extranet terminals in this tower double as security nodes to some of their servers. What I'm looking for are information caches from his agents."

"Wait, hold up," Garrus began. "I know last time you laughed at the notion of even working for the Broker, but this sounds like you're going after him."

"Because I am," she answered calmly. "Hm, I see the surprise," she smirked. "Shepard, I crossed paths with the Broker not long after… you know. We made enemies of one another. Ever since, I've been working to take him down."

"Why?" Liara glanced to the side, some bad memory or other.

"I was on a mission with a friend. We got caught, and my friend didn't escape. I don't know if he's dead or being interrogated, but I need to find him. I owe him my life."

"I… understand," I sighed.

"As I was saying, the Broker's most important agent on Illium is someone called the Observer. Taking them down will put me closer to the Broker. In the servers, there should be logs kept by the Broker's other agents. I'm hoping that the logs you find will point me in their direction. The agents will only be referred to by title and race. Inquiries from Nyxeris has narrowed down the identity to one of five races among the agents. Turian, Salarian, Krogan, Batarian, and, as ridiculous as it sounds, a Vorcha."

"Nyxeris? Your secretary?" Tali asked.

"Yes, she has less suspicion drawn to her compared to my other employees. She's actually my best," Liara explained. "I know of five terminals the broker uses here. Go to each, pull whatever logs you can, and please, tell me what you find."

 **Commander John Shepard**

That's strange. I went through the logs again. All five of the suspects are mentioned, but these logs also describe them as male. The observer is only mentioned once. "Observer recommends a kill, but she may have a grudge." She. Female. I called Liara.

"Shepard?" she asked.

"Something's not adding up, Liara. Your suspects are all male, but the Observer is referred to as female. Who did you say gave you this intel?"

"What? It was Nyxeris, she-" Liara paused. "She gave me the information," she whispered, emphasizing 'gave.' "Shepard, I'll talk to you later," she ended the call immediately. Well. I'd hate to be Nyxeris right about now.

"Should we… go check on her?" Tali questioned.

"Yeah, we probably should," I murmured. We made our way, quickly, back to the main trading floor. Outside the entrance to her Brokerage, there was a "help wanted" sign. And the secretary was staffed with a human woman. Likely one of Liara's other employees temporarily taking the position. The red-haired young woman just nodded, knowing who we were, and allowed us up. Everything appeared to be business as usual. Even when we entered Liara's office. Everything was neat and tidy. Completely unchanged. Except Liara had a black eye. She smiled.

"I'm not surprised, and I am grateful, that you came to check up on me so quickly."

"You ok?" Garrus asked.

"I'm fine, thank you. Nyxeris was skilled, but her barriers needed practice. And she had some very interesting information hidden away."

"It was really over that quickly? And everyone's just… unfazed?" Tali was surprised.

"I pay my employees very well. In fact, here," she activated her Omni-tool as mine was pinged. "Her salary for the rest of the year, and the bonus. This is a lucrative business... when you play it right." I checked the transfer. Jesus, over 100k?"

"This is… very generous, Liara. But, Cerberus funds us well enough," I warned.

"Shepard, please. I prefer practicality to elegance, that alone on Illium has saved me more credits than I can count. Add in my inheritance, some wise investing, and while this certainly isn't pocket change, it's more than affordable. I won't accept it back."

"All right, all right, fine," I relented.

"And I have one last thing for you. Don't worry, this one took nothing but a few moments of my time." Her omni-tool lit up again with another transfer. "A map of Nos Astra with places of interest for you and your crew. Price ranges, quality, who they do and don't serve, as well as areas to avoid because of merc activity. It should help make your stay enjoyable."

"Thanks, Liara."

"You have nothing to thank me for, Shepard. Now, I must apologize, I need to look through the information Nyxeris had on her. Maybe sometime before you leave, I can spare an hour or so for a meal with you three."

"That would be nice, Liara," Tali added. The Asari smiled at the Quarian. We began to take our leave, while I thought of what to do next. Hm, there's an idea. I pulled up the map and searched for nice restaurants. Obviously, ones that would serve Quarians as well. Hm, that last part narrows down most of the high-quality ones. And most of the remaining restaurants list a limited, and cheap, menu of nutrient pastes for 'indentured servants.' The three exceptions are pricey, but reviews are nice. Might just be that they think they can afford those kinds of menus to look nice. The more moderate quality places, hm, more variety. Some with slave menus for Quarians, some with actual food for them, all ranging in quality and priceyness. Double checking: Higher end all requires reservations, and suit and tie. Neither I can get today. Quarians just have to look nice. Tali definitely has that one under control. I chuckled under my breath.

"What is it, John?" Tali asked. Hm, comfortable enough to say my name around Garrus.

"Hm? Oh, planning."

"Planning what?"

"Lunch. I-"

"Oh no, I'm not third-wheeling again," Garrus interrupted.

"Damn right you're not. I wasn't inviting you," I chuckled.

"Oh, well now I just feel insulted," he feigned.

"You'll get over it. What do you think, Tali?"

"It sounds… nice, John," I'm certain she grinned. "I suppose I am feeling a little hungry. It has been a while since breakfast."

"Good! I actually think I have a place figured out," I remarked. "Shall we?"

"Don't mind me, I'll just go find a local dive bar," Garrus again feigned disappointment. We just ignored him.

"We shall." I called a cab, and Garrus wandered off. I checked the outside of my right thigh. Phalanx pistol concealed and comfortably secure. Shield generator secured under my shirt, inconspicuous. For Tali, the same goods were all built into her suit anyway. When the cab arrived, and we entered, it was an older, greasy, slightly overweight human male. One who fortunately kept quiet. The restaurant we were going to was located in one of the mega-mall dome constructs that frequent the city's surface. If one found themselves in one of the skyscrapers, it's either for business, a high-end restaurant, high-end apartments, or something like Nos Astra's trading floor. Our destination, Athenalis, was at the higher side of the medium end. Asari-owned, as is damn near everything on this planet.

It was about a fifteen-minute drive before we arrived outside the one housing our destination. And this place was doing well enough to afford an external entrance with a landing pad, closer to the top of the dome. It seemed a bit busy, but what day is it again? Right, it's a Monday afternoon. Probably one of their slower moments.

The cabbie dropped us off just outside the entrance, and I left behind the standard tip, plus the fare. He wasn't anything special, but he didn't try to take the long way. Besides, that's harder to do nowadays with a bird's eye view of everything. Unless those in the back are… distracted.

"John, are you sure?" I chuckled in response.

"Tsk, I think an N7 trained operative and tactician would know to check and see if his girlfriend can eat on their date," I joked. Tali stood rigid and was no doubt blushing.

"R-right." I just smiled and led her inside. An Asari hostess with three maybe four, other parties sitting and waiting. One a Turian couple, another Human, three Asari, and another Human male.

"Welcome to Athenalis. Table for two?"

"Table for two," I confirmed.

"There should be about…" she checked the terminal at the stand. "A twenty-minute wait. Will that be alright?" I glanced at Tali, she shrugged.

"Yeah, that's fine."

"Great! Name for the table?"

"J-" Wait, I shouldn't-heh, that'll work. "John Doe."

"Great!" she answered, being unfazed, either by not understanding, or just knowing not to react. "Here, this will buzz to alert you when your table is ready. Would you like to go over the menu while you wait?"

"More time chatting at the table or make this quick?" I asked Tali.

"Talking would be nice."

"Then we'll just take the menus at the table, thanks." Wow. I'm realizing that right now, I'm not much else than a yes-man. Garrus would say I was henpecked. Or the Turian equivalent.

He might be right.

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

That was… nice. Almost surprisingly. Between John and I just talking, about… just little things. Like him growing up in the Alliance, myself in classes on the fleet, the twenty minutes went by very quickly.

Our server, another Asari led us to our table, there was a portion of bread with a small dish containing some… herbs? A green liquid, and a brown liquid below that. He later explained the liquids were a mix of olive oil being the green liquid, and… balsamic vinegar. The server explained that they have a dextro equivalent available, but given the necessary sterilization for me, it would cost an additional five credits, rather than complimentary. The same extra would be applied to any meals that weren't nutrient paste. Shepard accepted before I could even argue. At least the water for me was already sterilized, free of charge. And at least the bread tasted good. When it came time to order, Shepard decided against an appetizer for himself, and so did I. What he did order, was something called… a steak. It was very obviously meat. He asked if it could be cooked rare, that must be expensive, getting rare kinds of meat. He also asked that it have some kind of colored cheese, blue, and a reduced form of that balsamic. Which, when the meals came out, he used a spoon to carefully take the syrupy goo onto the meat. He clearly enjoyed the flavor immensely.

As for myself, more of a mixed meal. While I suppose it's not financially smart for this restaurant to source ingredients from the fleet, preserved from Rannoch, Turian versions can still be quite satisfactory. Long explanation short, I ordered Louza, a Turian poultry, with a salad. It was a good meal and it was… really nice, having this time alone with John. John never even let me see the bill before he paid with a "twenty percent tip." I ask a lot of questions.

"So, anything else you'd want to do?" John asked.

"Why don't we walk around a bit?" I suggested.

"Window shopping? Sure thing."

"What's window shopping?" John chuckled as he began to respond.

"Just walking by stores, seeing what they have in their front windows. Anything catches an interest, go in, maybe buy something."

"Well, just to look, then."

"Tali? Cerberus. Credits," he reminded.

"...True." With the meal paid, we left via the megamall's entrance, rather than the exit to the outside, and got walking. It was crowded, but not by the fleet's standards. And I'd doubt by any standards this place has on the weekends. So, just what is it that we're passing by? A men's clothing store, a store for footwear, a toy store for children, tech stores for Omni-tools and other appliances. Oh… a store for women's undergarments. The posters along its windows featuring Asari who are all but nude.

"This is turning out to be less fun than I thought it could be."

"Nothing's striking your fancy either, huh? I've never really been much for commercial shit," John remarked.

"The only things I've seen so far that would interest the fleet and those in it at all would be the children's toys. Maybe those undergarments between bondmates."

"What? The lingerie?" he chuckled. "Figure that's probably more trouble than it's worth. I doubt your clean rooms have much privacy within them."

"Not the ones I've ever been in, but none of those have been cleanrooms for… er… bondmates." Awkward topic of conversation. One making me think of… things. With John. On one hand, I should really stop thinking about such, vulgar, things. On the other?

I really don't want to.

"Hm, well, regardless. By the time either partner gets those suits off, I'd bet they've lost the patience to put anything back on afterwards." I couldn't really answer him. Just trying to control my blushing, calm myself down. John stopped, hand going by his thigh.

"Tali, how many clips you got?"

I snapped to focus.

"One in, three spares. Why?" I questioned.

"Look around. It's empty. Even the stores," he pointed out. He's right. Suddenly, there's no one around.

"Shepard to Normandy, requesting armed backup. Suspecting ambush."

"I'm nearby, Shepard. I'll get there as soon as I can," Garrus answered.

"A fight? Count me in. Huh? Oh, Zaeed too," Grunt chuckled eagerly.

"I shall arrive presently, Commander, as well as Thane," Samara spoke.

"Jacob and I are en-route as well, Commander. Grunt, Zaeed, Samara, Thane, Jacob and I are still aboard. We'll take a shuttle and be right there," Miranda stated. That leaves every name but Jack. Wouldn't expect her to turn down a fight, must be in the middle of something.

"Sounds good. We'll be taking cover in…" he glanced around. "A jewelry store, name of Careen's."

"Why there?" I asked, we were already moving in.

"Cases are bulletproof, everything's wired to an alarm. Only store where our cover will actually be effective. Besides, a tech store or clothing store ain't gonna draw the same attention from cops as expensive gems." Makes sense to me. We hopped over the back counter and got our pistols out. A few seconds later, the gunfire began,

"Not only do we bag the bounty, but we get a big ass score too! Let's get em, ladies!" A woman's voice shouted. I took Chatika from her spot on my belt and threw her over the counter. Shepard and I shared another look, and stood, aiming. Leading the group was an Asari, and her fist was held back, glowing blue, she punched it forward, a blast of energy pulsing out.

Shit.

I was launched back, spun around. I saw nothing but a wall as I impacted, and everything went black.


	28. Cracked

**EXTRA AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, sorry about double ping today. Heard the upload email was screwing with some people after I deleted "whoops." So I took the chance to add a small thing I forgot during the Miranda scene at the end. And, I just want to make this clear, her views do not represent my own anyway. I do have to kinda... pretend I'm in her mind and thinking like she would after all. You'll understand what I mean when you read it.**

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, sorry about the late upload, I've got pneumonia as my christmas present and last night I had a shift of work that... did not go well. Was not able to push through. Went home, passed out, despite the chapter being ready to go. So, first thing after waking up is this. Happy New Year, and sorry about the delay!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

"Tali!" I shouted. The shockwave had knocked her face first into the wall, and my back had taken the blow. Goddamn Eclipse, going for a Blitzkrieg. Tali's not moving. I swear to fuck if she's hurt… Damn it, I can't check her yet, that bitch is about to try to finish the job. Tearing my eyes away from Tali, I gripped my pistol and angled it upwards, shifting my position to that of a kneel, brows furrowed in a silent fury as the overconfident Asari mantled over the cases we had used as cover, a wide and malicious grin across her features. She expected to find two incapacitated hostiles, instead, one's not only conscious, but prepared. Her shotgun had been angled away, and as her expression shifted to shock, I launched myself upwards, and the barrel of my pistol went straight for her neck. Definitely inside the range of her barrier.

"Fu-" she began. Knowing the shot would hit, and be a killing blow, I pulled the trigger. She had no time for the rest of her curse before the bullet tore through her throat. It reeled her head back, but her body still came crashing onto me. Thankfully, launching myself made it rather easy to quite literally shrug her off. I peeked over the counter. A pair of Eclipse sisters had begun to charge in behind the now dead Asari, having only gotten to the door. They had a moment of hesitation, seeing that they had more resistance than planned. But still, they saw only one. Part of them getting back on track. So, I fired, two shots on the merc on the left, quick as I could make em. The first shot was fully deflected by the shields, the second, broke through, but between what was left of the shields, and the armor, just made the merc stagger.

"Kalis!" the other sister foolishly wasted her only chance to save her friend by turning along her side, her rifle lowering. I had the opportunity for another shot, and took it, straight for the bitch's head. "No! You'll pay for-" the other Asari shouted, before biotics were used to pull her back out of the store. Likely one of their own pulling her back to regroup. An Eclipse hit squad, has to be. Better trained than the usual mercs, but not used to fighting military operatives, or experiencing many losses, it seems. Looks like I got a moment. I rushed to Tali's body, rolling her over onto her back. Oh shit, oh shit. Her visor's cracked. I can't see any more features of her face than usual, just the cracks, and her HUD is flashing, no doubt trying to alert her to a suit breach, but I couldn't see her eyes inside. I ran a quick scan with my Omni-tool, nothing more than to detect a heartbeat. Good, she has one, she's alive, but knocked out.

"Shepard to team. Two Merc's dead, but Tali is unconscious with a cracked visor. Double time it, and get Chakwas on standby," I ordered.

"ETA 90 seconds, Commander," Miranda answered.

"ETA fifteen seconds," Garrus added. Good, do wonder why he's so close though. But later. With my pistol ready I looked over the counter again. The mercs were preparing to attack again. Taking cover along the what should be bulletproof glass at the exterior. Obviously, they knew I could see them, but they didn't care. They still had numbers after all. Another three Asari in Eclipse armor were in position, and a fourth was in cover at the storefront adjacent to the jewelry store. An old antique store. Well, considering the alarm has yet to go off, let's find out if those windows really are bulletproof. They obviously want to wait until I won't be focusing on them. Such as an attempt to reload. Which I've only two shots left in the clip. I glanced back at Tali. Those motherfuckers. I fired at the head of one of the Asari. I shouldn't have, not yet at least. Stall them, test if the glass is bulletproof later. But right now, I'm pissed. The alarms beginning to blare wasn't helping my mood.

"Shit!" the Asari on the other side exclaimed, as the alarms began to ring. Different voice than the one who got pulled back earlier. With my off hand, I reached down to my pocket for a spare clip.

"That's it, this fucker dies," another Asari growled, that's the one. Their weak link.

"Idiot," the third muttered as said link moved around cover, forcing them into action. With my replacement clip ready, I fired, immediately ejecting the used clip and slapping in the new. Ducking as 'idiot' fired wildly, charging ahead. Shots impacting the wall, glass, anything but me. I won't be able to get another shot off like this. Let's try something else. I focused on the Asari charging in, eyes staying open. A biotic aura formed around me as I pulled my hand back, clenched in a fist then pushed out, palm open, flat, and forward. The mercs were surprised, they weren't expecting this. I hadn't used biotics in combat yet, but sure seems like I need to now. I hadn't trained on pushes or pulls yet either, but I break up a lot of the boredom during travel time with practice, pushing and pulling that coin. As my fist shot forward, the biotic field focused into a ball that launched out from my palm. All the while I was picturing the Asari being pushed back, straight through the doorway, crashing into her cohorts. And that's exactly what happened. She stopped her run as soon as the biotics had begun to form, and just allowed it to strike her right in the chest. Knocking the wind out of her and launching her and the other mercs back.

"The fuck?! Bounty didn't say he was biotic! Fucker better pay us a nice big bonus," the lead growled as they recovered, quickly getting out of my firing lane.

"For what? Your funeral?" A familiar Turian voice called out from the antique store, behind the merc they had placed there. Shocked, she began to turn, pulling out a knife at her thigh as she spun. She tried to slash open his stomach on the heel turn, but he just stepped back, grabbed her wrist with his right hand, and with his left he slashed at her throat with his talons. I couldn't see the impact, but I saw her free hand go to her throat as she dropped the knife, and her other hand was released, also going to her throat, and she began to slump to the ground. Garrus ran back to behind a counter in the antique store. Less likely that its glass was bullet proof.

"Goddess damn it all," the merc that wasn't the leader, or the young and pissy one muttered.

"Charge the Human, now!" the leader ordered. The three of them began sprinting. All eyes on me. Garrus began firing, but he still had only a pistol after all. I focused my biotics again, glancing at Tali. It's motivation alright, pissing me right the fuck off. Let's give these fuckers something new. I pictured a wave of energy in front of me, surging out and slamming against all three mercs. I pulled both of my hands back, trying to put all my strength into my biotics and pushed out. There was a wave of energy. And it slammed me back against the wall. Shit. That hurts a helluva lot. My head's pounding. I ran my left hand over my face. My upper lip was wet. I checked my palm, finding blood. Nosebleed? Probably shouldn't have… what did I do? Oh fuck, I shot up, pistol still in my right hand. The store was fucked. Anything loose was against the glass walls, and all the glass itself, while not broken, was in various stages of damage. Two of the Asari had been launched, yet again, out the store. They were as dazed as I am, struggling to get back up, one fell back onto their stomach. The third was on the floor, her neck bent at an unnatural angle and her blood against the glass wall.

"Shepard, you alright?" Garrus asked on the comms.

"Y-yeah," I groaned in pain. "Yeah I'm alright."

"Good. Hurry and help me secure the mercs," Garrus responded. I looked back up to see him rush out of the antique store, knocking the butt of his pistol against the one having better luck getting to their feet. We don't have cuffs after all, and better to just have her knocked out. I took a deep breath and climbed over the counter. Garrus gathered the arms of the unconscious merc behind her back and pressed his knee against her lower back, and the barrel of his pistol on her skull. Shaking my head, my eyes having difficulty focusing on anything, and my thoughts being… woozy. I approached the barely conscious merc and slowly pinned her like Garrus had, using the calm to refocus myself. That's a concussion alright. I took a dose of medi-gel to numb the pain and to stop the nosebleed.

"Yeah, you're also seeing Chakwas when we're back on the ship," Garrus remarked.

"Probably should. So, why were you already so close?" I asked. Garrus tilted his head to the side, confused.

"You and Tali were off to a district with a strong Eclipse presence. With the orders you had just given, EDI saw fit to let me know, and I decided I'd make sure I was nearby," he explained. Now confusion flashed across my own features. "You didn't know?" I shook my head, again, clearing my thoughts.

"We're in a mall, Garrus, not walking along the streets and back alleys. I guess checking didn't really cross my mind."

"Well, then this just goes to show how much influence a merc group can have on this world. Everything on the surface might as well be an alleyway." Garrus got on comms again. "Miranda, it's Garrus. Mercs are down, two prisoners. Tali is still unconscious, Shepard took a bad knock to the head but he's up and conscious, just dazed. Else he'd have called you before I did," he explained, sending a slightly joking grin my way.

"Understood. Entering the mall now and standing down. Be advised, police shuttles were starting to arrive," she answered.

"Got it, just head on over to our position. Take over the prisoners, take care of Tali. Shepard and I will handle the police."

"Will do. Mordin caught us just before we departed. He was in the middle of an experiment and couldn't answer on his own, left its stabilization to Lia."

"Stabilization?" I asked.

"No reason for alarm. Simply could not leave experiment unsupervised. Reaction being halted carefully to resume later. If fluctuations dangerous, throw of switch enacts safeties. Now, condition of patient?"

"Still unconscious with a cracked visor. Didn't have time for a medical scan," I answered.

"Understood. Will use Omni-gel to seal visor and administer antibiotics and immunoboosters until back on ship." Just a moment later, the others came around the corner to our barren little corner of the mall. Mordin was already staring at me inquisitively, so I pointed back to the jewelry store.

"Behind the counter." The doc nodded, making his way there. Grunt was very clearly annoyed at having missed the fight, while the others were surveying the damage. Miranda was particularly curious of the damage in the jewelry store. Grunt and Samara approached Garrus and I while the others secured the area.

"You wish for these assassins to live and sent under police custody, Commander?" Samara questioned. There was no hint of argument or disagreement in her tone, just a pure question. Like a machine asking for confirmation. I nodded. "Your will, be done." Grunt and Samara secured the mercs as Garrus and I stood back up, holstering our pistols. The mall intercom came to life.

"Nos Astra Police Department. All of your exits are blocked. Come out with your hands up!" Could they turn it down? That would be nice. Head's still pounding. Garrus and I shared a glance and made our way towards the mall entrance the others had used. We holstered our pistols, and when we arrived at the doors, raised our hands, stepping out, the doors automatically opening for us. There was a line of officers, two squads of the local SWAT equivalent. All the regular officers were wearing ballistic vests and no doubt had shields, taking cover behind their vehicles. A gunship overhead shining a searchlight down on us, almost blinding, and making my head pound even more.

"Council Spectre!" I shouted. "Eclipse tried to have me killed and bit off more than they could chew. It's over now. We have wounded, and two captive mercs for you to take into custody." A male Turian's voice answered, his voice amplified.

"There are no Human Spectres. Get on the-" He stopped, the Officers still aiming at us, but waiting for the go-ahead from their… on something with this much police attention, maybe their Commander. But maybe it is just the district Captain. Titles can vary from Department to Department. He must be talking with someone. Now there was another voice in his place.

"Didn't expect to see you again so soon. Stand down, coast is clear." Detective Anaya, of course.

"Sorry we took the fun from you, Anaya!" I called back, chuckling as the Officers lowered their weapons, the gunship no longer blinding us.

"You should apologize for the headaches. You said you had wounded. Need a lift to the hospital?"

"No, just a fast ride back to our ship. Our doc is more than capable of taking care of her."

"If you say so. Head on back to your people. I'll be inside with a squad in just a moment to take the mercs, and fill a report."

"Got it. We'll be waiting." Garrus and I returned inside towards the others.

"Guess I should have said that you'll handle it," he remarked.

"We're just lucky we ended up in Anaya's district. Made things leagues easier," I shrugged. We returned to the others. The merc Garrus had pinned was awake again, and Mordin had brought Tali out from the store, and had just finished a scan. He looked over to see me and the very visible nerves I had.

"Mask sealed, though will need replacement. Medications administered. Will survive, of course. No damage to spinal cord, but is at least suffering from a heavy concussion, hence, unconsciousness. Lack of damage to skull implies it is only, concussion. Should wake soon then, determine further extent. Clearly exposed to contaminants, will undergo standard immuno-response seen by Quarians with exposed heads. Perhaps ear and sinus infection. Bed-rest and standard medication. Will be fine," he explained.

"Exposed head? Isn't it all covered up though?" Grunt asked.

"Crack exposed head to air, if not eyes. Air contaminated. Bacteria, dead cells. Air exhaled by Shepard, mercs, earlier patrons and workers. Fortunate most, maybe all contaminants levo, limit patient's reactions to allergic, if severe."

"How do you know it was all levo?" I asked. I'm sure he'd have checked to see if the breach got her in contact with some Dextro germs, but I don't know what it could do to her. I don't like not knowing things.

"Simple. Gunfight in jewelry store. Not popular amongst Turians. Seen as frivolous. Further, majority of males in most species not interested in jewelry, least, not for self-decoration. Interesting coincidence. Might research on side in future. Further, Illium has low Turian population, lower Female Turian population. When on ship, detailed scan will confirm." Mordin explained. Ok, good, she's ok. I began to calm down, the adrenaline wearing off. My mind wandered to what Garrus said earlier. This area had a heavy merc presence. I didn't think to check that, as I told him. So, they got this opportunity because I was stupid. Shit. My thoughts were interrupted again by the sound of footsteps behind us. Anaya had arrived with four officers and a Turian male. The officers were two Asari, a Salarian, and a Human male.

"Detective, good to see you," I offered a hand.

"You too, Shepard. Just wish this time you could have caused trouble in someone else's district. I've already got more paperwork than I'm happy with," she remarked, still keeping it friendly.

"Which is any paperwork at all," Garrus joked.

"You could say that." She looked over my shoulder to Samara. "It's an honor to see you again, Justicar."

"It is a pleasure to see you as well, Detective." Anaya smiled, and then looked at Tali and the two mercs.

"I see you got another two Eclipse mercs for us. And I recognize the Quarian as one of yours. The wounded?"

"Concussion and a suit breach. Doc says she'll be fine," I answered.

"Good to hear. Shepard, this skeptic here is my boss, Police Colonel Trevis."

"I'm here to verify. Why don't you show me those credentials, corpse?" Hostility. Great. The grin I was showing for Anaya faded, brows furrowing. Westerlund news must either not be a popular network around here, or there were officials discrediting her story. I activated my Omni-tool and showed him the ID, Spectre status active. He huffed as he read. "So why were Eclipse trying to put you back in the ground?" Anaya stepped in.

"That'll all be in my report, sir. I can handle this from here." He just eyed me again, shook his head, and left.

"Sorry about him. While he's been on the force for years, he's spent too much time playing bureaucrat," Anaya stated once he was out of earshot. "Now-"

"Ugh… Keelah, what happened?" Tali groaned, waking up and sitting up. Head in her hand. She made a noise under her breath, maybe stifling a curse. Anaya didn't stop me from getting down on a knee to check on her. "John?" She looked around, her body wincing as her head still pounded. "What's everyone doing here?"

"You don't remember?"

"Common in concussions that leave victim unconscious. No cause for alarm," Mordin reassured. Ok, good.

"Eclipse ambushed us after dinner. We took cover in a jewelry store, called for backup, then got charged. The first one in launched a shockwave that knocked you out cold. Cracked your visor too, b-"

"What?! Where!" she pawed at her mask frantically, searching for it.

"It's sealed! It's sealed," I reassured. "Mordin sealed it with omni-gel but you were exposed to the air for a few minutes. Once we're done here, we're taking you back to the ship to be under Chakwas' watch." She took a deep breath.

"Thank you, Mordin." The doc just nodded. "Go, finish… whatever you need to do. I don't want to be here any longer than I have to." I nodded, and gave her a grin, standing back up.

"Well, I got part of the story now. Tell me all of it?" the Detective asked.

"Technically, we were ambushed after taking cover in the jewelry store." That gave her some confusion. "We noticed that almost out of nowhere, we were suddenly the only ones in a mall. Instincts kicked in, it was suspicious as hell. I knew that the glass and counters in that store would be bulletproof, and that when damaged, well, the cops would respond to that alarm a lot faster than some clothing store. Then they showed themselves with the charge and shockwave. The firefight ensued, causing all that damage, and Garrus was the first of my backup to arrive, took care of the merc in the antique store there."

"And do you know why the Eclipse wanted you dead?" she asked.

"I heard them refer to a bounty several times. My guess it's that they're pissed at me and one of their higher ups put a price on my head. When I helped Samara, that wasn't the first time I had screwed over Eclipse operations." Or take away a big client of theirs. But I won't say that part.

"Adds up. One last part. I need to know what you and your friend were doing here in the mall."

"We went out to dinner and she wanted to walk around. Window shop." She gave me a look. One that said, 'Dinner, huh?' I don't think she believed that was a lie, but I do believe she was catching on that maybe Tali wasn't just my friend. I also didn't see any disgust.

"That should do it for my report then. We'll take the mercs, and you can go back to your ship." We handed them over, the officers slapping on the cuffs, while I helped Tali along back to the shuttle. She may have insisted she didn't need it, but she also didn't stop me from putting her left arm over my back and me putting my right hand on her hip. Miranda led the group back to our shuttle outside. A majority of officers were still in the process of pulling out, and a small handful seemed to be holding off the press. Definitely want to get out of here now. We entered our shuttle, and everyone but Grunt took a seat, who just paced around the cabin, grumpy, while Miranda went into the cockpit. The shuttle took off, and brought us back to the Normandy. When we did arrive, Grunt stormed off to the elevator ahead of anyone else, which just left him waiting, annoyed, in the elevator while everyone else got in. That was where people began to disperse. Jack and Grunt at engineering, Miranda, Thane, Samara, Mordin, Garrus, Tali, and myself at Crew quarters. Mordin, Garrus, and I brought Tali to the medical bay. Mordin, it seems, was still viewing Tali as his patient. And just as the door opened, Chakwas waiting on standby, Tali sneezed. A high-pitched and sudden noise. It sounded cute, in a way. Despite it meaning the sickness was setting in.

"Bed. Now," Chakwas ordered. With a sniffle, she did just that. "Mordin?" The doc nodded, and his Omni-tool lit up, he pressed some keys, and a second later, Chakwas did. Must have transferred the data from his scan. Chakwas skimmed it, and scanned her again as she sneezed yet again. "How's her memory?"

"She didn't remember anything after the dinner," I answered. "Don't know if there's anything else."

"I know we're on… Illium. We've a mission against the Collectors," Tali spoke up. Chakwas nodded.

"Memory's intact, though her short-term was distorted. I'll check it again soon. Mordin, all you gave her was anti-biotics and immunoboosters?" she asked. The doc nodded.

"Then I'll have a new dose for her in a few hours. And for the Concussion…" Chakwas went to her supply cabinets, looking for something specific. "There you are." She returned with a small canister and syringe. "Painkillers. They'll make you drowsy, but I need you to stay awake a while longer before I can safely let you nod off. Lift your arm for me?" Tali complied, Chakwas turned it so the inside of the arm was facing out, revealing the part of the suit she needed. Right at the inside of her elbow, an injection site. Chakwas inserted the needle just a slight bit, not getting to Tali's skin, but what's essentially an airlock in her own suit. The needle end is at a mid-point between the exterior and interior, the fluids are released, the suit takes them in and transfers it all to where it needs to go, injecting Tali with the meds where they need to go. "Now, you." Chakwas turned her attention to me. "You know the drill." I held my hands up defensively, and got into the other medical bed. Chakwas ran her scan on me. "You didn't lose consciousness and I know your memory was intact enough to fill in the gaps for Tali. Anything that the scan can't tell me?"

"Once the adrenaline from the fight wore off, everything seemed a bit loud for my tastes. And on and off, focus was a bit more difficult, but, that parts over now."

"Good. Now, strangely, I'm reading that the implant in your skull, the one for biotics, underwent some strain. The scan also shows that your brain in that area has some minor bruising. No serious damage, I believe. I'll want Miranda to take a look at the readings later, but for now, I'm prescribing the same I am for Tali. Painkillers and bed-rest. But you should be back to normal tomorrow," Chakwas explained.

"Will leave patients in your care. Return to own experiments," Mordin stated.

"Thank you, Professor. It's good to no longer being the only one patching up John."

* * *

 **Miranda Lawson**

Shepard and Tali have both been back aboard for a few hours now in the care of Doctor Chakwas. I believe they're both asleep now. The Eclipse putting a price on the Commander's head is concerning, but I can't say it's surprising. But what's really keeping me up, is how much has gone on today that I don't understand. Why did Shepard and Tali go for a meal, but didn't want Garrus to join them? The three of them are old friends, I know that, but what is there that the two would talk about that they wouldn't want Garrus to hear? As for why they went to the kind of restaurant they did, I can understand Shepard may have wanted to treat himself, and get his friend to eat more than just nutrient paste. That fits how he treats the two. Maybe-

No, no. The rumors of the crew are just gossip. On long missions they'll jump on any piece of gossip like that to entertain themselves. And besides, she's a Quarian, he's Human. They're not the same species, how could they get such an interest in one another? Especially when one doesn't know what the other looks like? And it's not like there's any sexual deviancy on, that doesn't seem to be in Shepard's character nor would it even be simple enough to allow for quick and careless releases like that. Add in how they wouldn't be able to reproduce, I believe that further rules out those rumors. If she was an Asari, just maybe I could see it.

I was reminded again of my own... condition. I swallowed the bitterness. I can't have a child of my own, and yet it's something I wish for someday. To have a child of my own and raise them in a way my father never could. I know that if, somehow, I met a man who could somehow bypass my own infertility, I might well jump at the chance. Tying it back to those two, I can't see anyone being with anyone who they can't reproduce with. Of course I'm aware that same-sex relationships can't reproduce either, but in turn they artificially inseminate. For two women, they pretend so hard that both are the biological parent, and to their own minds, it becomes true. For two males, it's the same but with the addition of the third party female.

I shook my head, thinking on and on like this makes me no better than the crew when they gossip. And none of this has anything to do with the real concerns. The damage to the jewelry store. It doesn't make sense. It's like grenades went off but explosives would have blown open the glass, and caused more damage to the display cases. It could be biotic attacks from the mercs, but the extent of the damage was too wild and haphazard. A biotic detonation? No, that would have caused far more damage. Hm, maybe… yes, that's a possibility. Shepard may have pushed himself under the circumstances to do what he wasn't ready for yet. True, it may well have been necessary. I need security footage.

"EDI, get me on the line with Detective Anaya," I ordered. "Tell her it's a member of Shepard's crew who has a question about tonight's events."

"At once, Operative Lawson." It answered. I waited at my desk a few moments as the call went through. I imagine she is busy.

"Detective Anaya." the Asari began.

"Good evening, Detective. This is Operative Miranda Lawson. I'm the Commander's XO."

"Evening, Lawson. What can I do for you?"

"I'd like to request a copy of security cam footage from the mall moments before, and through the duration of tonight's assassination attempt."

"Yeah, I should be able to requisition a copy for you, given the Commander's a Spectre and all. But the paperwork's gonna need to know why you want a copy," Anaya explained.

"The damage sustained by the Jewelry store leads me to believe there might have been the use of unstable biotics. If I'm correct, there might be dangers to the Commander's health."

"Got it. Do you want footage from the entire mall, or just the ones around and at the attack?"

"The latter, thank you."

"I'll send a copy down this line in a few hours. Give the Commander and his girlfriend my well wishes." Again, people just assuming such an outlandish thing.

"I'm sure they'll appreciate it, Detective. Thank you."


	29. The Med-Bay

**EXTRA AUTHOR'S NOTE: Forgot to mention, so re-uploading the chapter. I commissioned some artwork from Palavenmoons and the results are now in! It's Shepard and Tali, based off of the end of my N7 day special chapter. And she even threw in a free sketch that I'll be using as this storie's Thumbnail! I'd link to her Tumblr, but, y'all know what happened there. So, you want to see the Commissioned piece, join my discord! Either join the Discord server with the ending tag of /y5JYGQU or friend me. MakoGT#5797**

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, sorry I wasn't able to get another chapter out, Pneumonia plus work equals a very bad time. Add in a day of dehydration with a panic attack that literally leaves me collapsing and going straight to the hospital, and it's also a really bad time. (I am physically fine, btw. Making that clear.) I've just been busy. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Miranda Lawson**

Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable. What the hell was he thinking, pushing himself like that without training? Not with biotics. I didn't spend two years of my life bringing him back and improving him just so he could paralyze or even kill himself by being so reckless with biotics. And the damage it must have done to his implant. I stormed from my office, pass the mess and all the curious and confused faces of the crew, ground team and ship crew alike, then into the med-bay. Chakwas was at her desk, Garrus was leaning against the left wall, drink in hand, while Shepard sat beside the bed Tali was resting in. They were talking, laughing, though it was a struggle for the Quarian. I had seen on the duty roster earlier this morning that Chakwas cleared him for duty, thus why he's not in a bed himself. Though he should be.

"What were you thinking, Commander?!" I shouted the moment I had stepped in. All eyes turned. They were either surprised or annoyed.

"Probably something along the lines of 'fuck Cerberus,' or how I'd do anything for my crew, or if about last night, I wanted a nice and relaxing evening. What now, Lawson?" Shepard grumbled. Before I could respond, Tali released a small series of wet coughs.

"Your biotics, Commander. Your implant is both experimental, and you're still training. The throw was one thing I can overlook, but whatever the hell you did that backfired and exploded? Not only could that have fried your implant, but it could also have fried your entire nervous system!" It was silent for a moment, while all the others glanced amongst themselves.

"And here I was expecting something we'd just forget about a few seconds after she left," Garrus remarked, earning the Turian a glare from me. He didn't seem to care.

"Take it you saw the security feed, then. Then you saw that Tali was unconscious and I was mighty pissed. On top of that? The odds were most certainly not in my favor. I needed an edge, and it worked out." He defended.

"This is serious, Shepard. Would that edge have mattered if you got yourself paralyzed? Look, I need to assess the damage to the implant. Using your biotics with its current damage could still cause burnout." Shepard shrugged in response and allowed me to make the scan. "Hm. Not as bad as I feared, but there is damage. We have replacement parts on board already, and we'll need to operate in order to install them. Until then, you absolutely cannot use your biotics."

"Do it en route to our next destination?" he asked.

"Yes, while we will be going through the skull for the procedure, it won't require any digging around in your brain. Minimizing recovery time."

"Alright, no biotics until then. I can manage that. Anything else?" I took a deep breath to calm myself.

"Just that you need to take your biotics slow. Even in normal situations, it's always been ideal for biotics to manifest during the younger ages. The older one is when training begins, the greater the challenges and the risks. Add in experimental tech, and that's all tripled."

"Got it." I nodded as my own response and let them all be. The Illusive Man needs to know. Instead of returning to my office, I made my way up to CIC and into the comm/briefing room. I initiated the call, the table lowering as the room prepared for the holograms.

"A moment, Ms. Lawson. The Illusive Man is ending his current call," EDI informed. Of course, this mission is high enough on his priorities list to warrant interruptions in his schedule, but during meetings or calls he can't just immediately hang up but has to end his meeting or call for at least a few moments. The holo panels lit up to display his office, he was sitting in his chair as always, and smoking his cigarette. No need for formalities, he's a busy man.

"Apologies for the interruption, sir, but I have news regarding the Commander's health."

"Is this related to the attempt on his life yesterday?" he asked. Of course, I'm his most trusted eyes on this operation but not the only ones he had watching it. On top of any other of his operatives on Illium.

"Partially. Specifically, regarding his implant. During the attack, he saw fit to push his current biotic capabilities. While it worked out in the end, it did result in a large blast that gave him a concussion, on top of minor damage to his implant. Fortunately, only parts we already have replacements for were damaged."

"And no lasting damage to the Commander himself?"

"None."

"Good," he took a drag of his cigarette. "Operative Lawson, over the course of this mission I've been wondering if I was wrong to deny your suggestion about installing a control chip within his brain. As a result, I want you to try and convince the Commander to stall on Illium a few more hours while we send you upgrades for the implant. Upgrades with a control chip installed."

"And for the record, this is in spite of his claim of an immediate suicide upon learning?" I questioned.

"It won't be used unless I personally deem it absolutely necessary. Maybe that will be when the mission ends and Shepard attempts to break away. Maybe I'll allow him to go on until he becomes more trouble to our cause than he's worth. At worst, it'll be a kill switch. At best, and what I believe most likely, the suggestions and changes to his electric impulses it'll convince him to either leave our operations alone or even work with us again. Or maybe they'll piece together it's the implant in time and remove it, but still removing his biotic abilities," The Illusive Man explained.

"And what if I can't convince him to accept the implants?"

"Then give him the replacements you have on board and we'll deal with the consequences later. His use of it will still provide us with valuable data for using similar implants on our agents."

"Understood, sir." The Illusive Man nodded, and the call ended, the holograms and the darkness of his office, the ominous glow of the star fading, replaced with the ship's bright interior lighting. Back to my quarters first. I want to wait a small while before returning with this news. Most of the crew who was in the mess earlier had dispersed by now, Gardner was cleaning up. I waited an hour, checking in with contacts, then I left for the med-bay. I entered, interrupting the fun of the trio again.

"Again? Damn, you must have really screwed up," Garrus remarked.

"Just an offer, Commander. I received news of upgrades we can add to your implant. It'll make your biotics stronger and less of a strain to use. Some of these upgraded parts will take the place of the damaged parts as well."

"Straight out of a Cerberus base, huh? Yeah, I'll pass." Let's not make it so easily. I didn't tell him it was from Cerberus, after all.

"Actually, it's from an Illium manufacturer. It's experimental, but the manufacturer is reliable, and quality. I just need to respond to them with the credits and it'll arrive here in just a few hours.

"Look, Lawson, say I was alive and conscious when you were putting all this tech into me. I doubt I'd accept half of what you put into me. And that was before I was insulting your boss on the daily. Before you learned just how hostile I really am towards your organization. You already told me you wanted to put a control chip in me before. So forgive me if I don't trust anything you want to put inside my head now," he frowned. "And you know, for someone who's biggest gripe with their father is how absolutely controlling he is, you seem to have little problem exerting your own control, or subjugating someone else." I felt anger rise, and I opened my mouth to argue, but… nothing came out. What can I say? It's different? "Think on that, why don't you?" I recomposed myself, taking a deep breath.

"If it would make you more comfortable, Mordin and Doctor Chakwas can retrieve it, and scan it, while you decide whether or not to install it." Their scans might catch the bug, but at least this way I'll have it aboard. "But they're looking to get the prototype out soon, and your recovery will be much faster if it's taking the place of parts that already need to be replaced opposed to replacing half the implant." Shepard was silent a moment.

"Mordin and Lia can retrieve it, handle it, and scan every part of it for anything sketchy. As it stands, I'm not taking your upgrade, but maybe they can convince me." Good, good. Even if it's just on board, it gives me a much higher chance to switch the parts without anyone knowing if he still decides against them.

"I'll let them know, Commander." I nodded and left. It's fortunate The Illusive Man changed his mind while the Commander was concussed. I'd bet he'd turn it all down no matter what if it wasn't impairing his logic.

 **Commander John Shepard**

Miranda walked out of the med-bay, and I felt a pang of regret. Why did I agree to that? Ah well, having it on board doesn't mean it's going in my head. And hopefully she'll think about my comparison to her father.

"Is it just, a trend or something that members of the Normandy crew have to have some sort of father issues?" Garrus asked. "I mean, we know Tali has less of a father and more of an Admiral, I've got a history of disagreements and disappointment, Wrex's father tried to kill him, Jack doesn't even have one, Grunt's was a psychotic Krogan Doctor, am I missing anyone?

"Liara never knew hers," I added.

"Right, she didn't," Garrus chuckled.

"You really shouldn't-" she took a deep breath. "Ah-chew!" she sneezed, then groaned, putting a hand up to her head. "Keelah. Accept the implant. I don't-" she was interrupted again by her cough. "Trust her."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Still doesn't mean I'll accept the parts. And hey, one of the reasons I keep you two around is to keep my ass in line," I remarked.

"And queue Tali saying something like 'and what a nice ass it is,'" Garrus mocked. Tali reached behind her head, grabbing her pillow, and throwing it at the Turian's face, resulting in more laughter from him and I than we had already started with.

"It seems some things are just cross-species," Chakwas chuckled quietly to herself, shaking her head, smirking. Tali huffed into a cough, wincing, and laid back down as I returned her pillow. The door to the med-bay opened again, but this time, instead of an angry buxom brunette from… Australia, I'd bet, there was a small and petite hooded Japanese woman.

"Hey, I heard what happened. Wish I could have been there to help," Kasumi greeted, walking in. "You alright, Tali?"

"The concussion is new, but it's not my first suit breach. I'll be fine." Contrary to her claims, she immediately had a small, but harsh coughing and sneezing fit. "Why is it that every time I-" she cleared her throat. "I make that claim, I get the worst of it?"

"I like to think it's the body calling you out on your bullshit," Chakwas remarked nonchalantly from her desk. Everyone except the sick little Quarian laughed. Tali huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I just want to be out of this bed. I can work!"

"Anyone can work until their body gives out on them. But they shouldn't. And you, my dear, are no exception," Chakwas stated.

"But-"

"No. My job isn't just to save your lives when you take a bullet but to keep you all healthy and capable. If I let you work in your current state, you probably won't last an hour, the quality of your work will suffer, and you'll take that much longer to recover. If you're guilting yourself for not working, which, I know you are, know that it's better for your work, in the long run, to rest and recover as I am ordering you." Tali turned to me, hoping I might counter. I held my hands up.

"This is medical, Tali. Her authority surpasses mine here. Commanding officer or not."

"And don't you dare forget it," Chakwas chuckled.

"So where were you, anyway?" I asked Kasumi, changing the topic.

"Oh, the usual. Checking in on some contacts, casing a few places for me to hit after this mission, making preparations for Hock. That ambush happened while I needed radio silence for some casing," the thief explained. "Sorry, your date got ruined."

"Well, up until the window shopping, it was actually pretty nice," I grinned at Tali, taking her hand. Garrus faked a gag. Kasumi rolled her eyes at Garrus but smiled at us.

"In a surprising way, being a softy suits you, Shep."

"Surprising?"

"Big badass with some emotional baggage, yet with a heart of gold and a soft spot for his friends, and particularly, his adorable girlfriend," Kasumi giggled. Tali was absolutely blushing.

"You should have known him as a child," Chakwas smirked.

"You knew kiddie Shep?" Kasumi almost squealed, wide-eyed.

"Knew him? I helped deliver him, then helped raise him, being good friends with his mother!"

"Please tell me you have baby pictures! I want to leak them everywhere!" Kasumi exclaimed, beaming. Oh god, now it was my turn to blush and feel some embarrassment. And Tali seemed pleased.

"I second that!" Garrus called out. Chakwas laughed.

"While I may have changed his diapers, once upon a time, I did manage to gain some level of respect for the man and his privacy. The baby pictures are all with his mother. You'd have to convince her."

"Damn. Guess I know what my next heist is, though."

"Ha, don't even try. She's got eyes on the back of _your_ head," I joked.

"I like a challenge," Kasumi giggled. "Alright, I have some planning to do. Hock's party is this Saturday. I'll leave you all be. For now."

"Bye, Kasumi," I stated while Garrus gave a short wave, and Chakwas a nod.

"Thanks for checking in," Tali added. As the door closed behind her, Garrus turned back to us.

"She is certainly… interesting." My omni-tool then proceed to ring with a vid-call. Liara. I answered.

"Shepard," she began, looking worried. "I heard about what happened. Are you all alright?" She asked.

"Took a bang to the head, but alive. Tali got the worst of it," I moved my arm so that Tali was on the screen for the Asari.

"Cracked visor, concussion," Tali then coughed. "And infection."

"Goddess, I'm sorry. What were you doing in Eclipse territory?"

"They were on a date," Garrus answered.

"A date? Oh! You two finally told each other?" Liara's expression shifted from concern to happiness and support.

"It's been hell, Liara. Hell. Please for the love of the spirits, find me a regular Turian woman, so there can be something not so... sappy."

"Sorry not everyone's into primal rutting, clawing, and biting," I joked. Tali was just blushing again. He hooked the talons of his thumb and index finger of the same hand together, and pushed out until it made a clacking sound, like a human snap. A Turian's version of the middle finger.

"I'm glad to see that somethings just never change," Liara smiled. "I must get back to my work, but I'm glad you're all doing so well." We gave our farewells to Liara, and the call ended. Then I remembered. Kasumi's heist is at the end of the week, and it's Monday. It took a day to go from the Citadel to here, but how long to Zorya and back to the Citadel from there? Bekenstein is in a neighboring system, so it's probably a good idea to leave the ship at the Citadel, Kasumi, myself, and anyone else who might be needed just take a shuttle, that will probably just take an hour. I commed Joker.

"Joker, plot a course for Zorya and tell me when we should arrive if we leave tonight. Then, if we'd make it back to the Citadel by Friday night after spending, a day at Zorya."

"Calculating now. Just a minute." It was quiet for a moment. "Yeah, we can do that, Shepard. Barely, but we'd make it."

"Good. Set the schedule. EDI, alert the crew and send the recalls for 8 PM tonight."

"At once, Commander," the AI answered.

"So much for staying in Terminus," Garrus chuckled. It was then that I noticed Tali had lost herself in thought. Understandably, not paying too much attention as it didn't concern her.

"Doctor," she began. "I know you're not allowing me to work my body, but would you stop me from doing some research? I have a few ideas for my work in engineering. Tune-ups for the drive core, the shields, other systems."

"So long as you sleep when I tell you to sleep, and you leave the physical labor to those in engineering. They can test your tune-ups.

"Thank you. This, at least, should keep me sane." Hm… tune-ups, huh?

"Speaking of improvements. Garrus, you ever get anything more on those weapons you mentioned?"

"I've gotten back into contact with the guy, but I've yet to bring the weapons up. He's a bit nervous, he knows he told me something that's too classified for my 'station.' I want your backing when I bring it up, but I think it would help to have you reinstated in the Alliance, then have Hackett help you out when it comes to the arrangements. Maybe he and Anderson can pressure Sparatus to throw in support."

"Got it. I'll mention it to them when we're next on the Citadel."

 **Commander John Shepard**

We were getting close to departure time now. Garrus and I, for the most part, had just remained in the med-bay. I was here the whole time, except to bring in food and water, but Garrus had, on occasion, gone to do at least a little bit of work on the ship's weapons. Now, the Turian was back with us, and the med-bay doors had opened to reveal someone we hadn't seen in a while. Jack.

"Heard Eclipse jumped you." She glanced at Tali. "If they got her, guess they got off a lot worse," the tattooed woman walked in, wearing the same, partially open cargo pants she wears on the ship, and for a top, just the same straps she had in the cryo pod. The one on the right wasn't even covering anything. Tali immediately just looked away.

"And, where were you? Doubt you came in here to check up on us," I remarked.

"You're right. I want the doc to check me."

"For?" Chakwas asked.

"STDs. Went out for an orgy as soon as I finished telling you about that favor I want? Just got back."

"You left for an orgy last night, and only just got back from it?" I asked, somehow, surprised.

"Yep. I was in the freezer for a few months. Wanted some good fucking, booze. Blow off steam. I've already pilled it, but don't want any other souvenirs. Won't have any problems from the Turians there, though. Not my first time." She was really damn casual about this.

"K-keelah," Tali murmured.

"Don't be surprised, Buckethead. I'm walking around with my tit out and not caring. If it wants to fuck, I'll probably fuck it. The Orgy was Turian, Krogan, Asari, the Hanar were fun. There was even a four eyes there. And Elcor are just massive. I can fit my whole leg up the chicks.

"Jesus, Jack. We don't need the details."

"Unfortunately for you three, I do. Were there any other species present?"

"I wasn't the only human. Already mentioned the Elcor. Some Volus watched but they couldn't get their suits off. One of the Krogan brought some Vorcha, gave that a shot. A group of Asari brought in a Varren, but that wasn't my speed." Oh, that's just disgusting.

"And did you do anything with those who did try?" Chakwas asked.

"Probably," she shrugged. The doc kept her reactions in check, and just ran the medical scan.

"There's a lot there, Jack. And only one of them is naturally human. Some of them can't affect your biology, but I believe it'll be wise to cure it anyway for the sake of future partners. And there's scale itch from the human. I won't be able to give you all the medications you need at once. I'm taking you off the duty roster until I can make sure you're clean."

"Fine. You don't need to keep me in here, do you?"

"No, just let me get the first cocktail of meds ready first," Chakwas stated, moving to her medicine cabinet, searching for the right medications, then putting them in the mixing equipment. A few moments later, she put the mixture into a syringe, injected Jack, and let her go.

"Some people…" Chakwas sighed.

"Suddenly, I can't wait to be off of Illium," Garrus muttered.

"Can I turn my audio receptors back on?" Tali asked, a bit more loudly than necessary. I nodded when she looked at me. "I don't want to know."

"No. No, you really don't."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: I made Palaven cry as she edited that last part. Not by me actually doing anything, but because her eyes read that Jack section. (She approved of this in the author's note but I'd probs do it anyway to mess with her.) BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY: Feel like I should say this because I'm sure Fanfic has plenty of younger people on it or others who have misconceptions about sex. (I'm sure you've all read those fics with really bad and confusing sex stuff that makes no sense) Jack popping a pill was meant to be preventing fertilization. Don't just rely on that to not be a baby-maker. But Mass Effect is the future and they probably can. Practice safe sex. Besides, taking a birth control pill ain't protecting yo ass or yo coochie from them STDs. Condoms, male or female, do. And don't ever use more than one at a time. It just breaks the condom. And don't use a male and female condom at the same time either. Also, real life? While there's plenty of curable STDs, they're not nearly as easy to cure or treat as taking a few pills and then done. And plenty more, like AIDS, that can't be cured today. (But I'll bet they all can be in the Mass Effect time-line. BUT NOT IN MODERN DAY.)**


	30. Vengeance

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, first section here, as you might be able to put together yourself, is all meant to make Miranda's eventual transition from Cheerleader to actually being agreeable, more natural. As for Zaeed's loyalty mission part of this, I know, it's short. Surprised me actually with how short it was, relative to plenty other missions. But… it really is a short mission. I think the next one should be able to be a bit longer for Kasumi's mission, as well as some of the… let's call it interim stuff. Anyways, thanks for reading, and hope you enjoyed!**

 **Miranda Lawson**

I wasted no time in returning to my quarters and informing The Illusive Man that the Implant would be allowed on board. As I sent the message, I took a deep breath and leaned back in my chair, pressed a button on the desk to lock the door, crossed my left leg over my right, and put a hand to my forehead. What Shepard said about me and control, my father, back in the med-bay. This is, different, isn't it? He did what he did for selfish reasons. I'm trying to keep a dangerous man from tearing down an organization's plans to better humanity.

Yet his reasons surround experiences where he believes Cerberus did horrible things. I have a hard time believing that Cerberus would be responsible for Akuze, as the victims were human, and I don't see the benefit of such experiments. And I hardly find this, Corporal Toombs to be a reliable source on the matter. As for his experiences during his mission against Saren, rogue cells are always a possibility. Our military cells are, after all, the more unruly, according to the reports I've seen.

But would it be better to convince Shepard that his perceptions are wrong rather than take away his free will? No, it's unlikely, and doing this will simply be more efficient and less risky. I just- God, I sound like him. I shook my head, I don't know where that voice in my head came from. Back to it. Shepard is unlikely to be convinced through reason that his perceptions are wrong, especially considering any sort of concrete proof he'd require either may not be possible or would have to come from Cerberus itself, and that would immediately prevent him from believing it. If we do nothing, the Commander is most certainly more valuable to us and the Galaxy alive than dead, but we won't be able to afford him personally dismantling the entire operation, and we'd be forced to kill him. With a control chip, it will slowly make him more amenable to our cause. At worst, it will result in his death sometime after the chip is activated, as he'd refuse to be a "puppet." But at least then, it would be without extensive damage to our operations. Alternatives: Shepard becomes aware of the changes, and removes the chip, then only becomes more focused at attacking Cerberus wherever he can find them. Or best case scenario, the chip works, it works slowly, and he starts to fall in line.

But what about those close to him? Doctor Chakwas, Councilor Anderson, Joker, and of course, the Turian and Quarian? They'd catch on quickly the moment even the thought of Cerberus didn't enrage him. Yes, having the Commander on our side would be an enormous boon, but, so long as they are around, the possibility of the chip working seems much less likely. The Illusive Man had to have taken that into account, right? I've ensured he's very well aware of the close bond between the three of them. So what made him change his mind? I remember he was adamant that the chip not be installed when I first suggested. He wouldn't accept any potential changes to the man's personality. He understood having him on our side would be invaluable, but found it too risky. Could he be testing me? It wouldn't be the first time, but would he test in a way that could jeopardize such a vital mission? Say I succeed in getting the chip in his head. If they realize during the mission, then the consequences will be instant, and disastrous. If I don't succeed, if I'm caught? I'll either be killed or kicked off, and no doubt the partnership will be broken. Granted, EDI is, fortunately, our failsafe in that scenario, it's not at all ideal.

But how would I even manage to ensure its installation? If Shepard denies the new implant, I'd have to physically make the switch myself. Assuming it's not simply disposed of, I suspect The Professor will store it somewhere in his lab. I'd have to sneak by both him and the other Quarian, and on top of that, bypass any security he's no doubt installed.

It's doomed to fail, it has to be. Yet… I have orders to try, and I'm the Illusive Man's best. 'A tool you cannot use is best discarded, Miranda. And _everyone_ must be your tool, or you will be theirs. As you are mine.' Why did I remember that? Everything that man says I bury and bury deep. It must have been what Shepard said. No, I'm not him. Father would do this for different reasons than I would.

'So he's not wrong?' that same voice whispered. I shook my head again. Of course, he is. Everything about him was wrong. 'Yet you do exactly as he would?' I shook my head again, silencing the voice.

It's a bad idea. It's too late, at least. The control chip will be abandoned. The risks are greater than the benefits. It's done. It's over.

Despite my final decision, the voice spoke one last time. I couldn't even get the last word against myself.

'You even think just like him…this changes nothing.'

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

After Mordin and Lia had returned with the tech and scanned it, they had confirmed that the tech of the implant would indeed be an upgrade, but there was something that simply didn't add up. A part that their scans couldn't determine the use of, as if it was blocking scans. All that had done was reinforce my decision to not bring it anywhere near my head. I asked Mordin to reverse engineer it and determine the use of the sketchy part. If he can produce a safe upgrade, then I'd be willing to accept it. But in the meantime, I had the broken parts replaced and we were now in orbit around Zorya. Tali, unfortunately, was still condemned to bed-rest, so Kasumi would take her place as a tech expert. Beyond that, I was taking Garrus and Zaeed, obviously, as well as Grunt and Thane. I had a feeling it wouldn't be wise to bring Samara on this mission. As for the planet itself, it's like a Green Omega controlled by the Suns. Mostly unpopulated, relative to the surface at least, and the local companies, thanks to lax industrial laws, work their refineries in the cheapest, and dirtiest ways. Fortunately for the planet, at the current rate, it'll take centuries for that to be a real problem, and long before then, industries will be forced to adopt cleaner methods.

Considering this was Zaeed's contract, the plan was more or less his. We'd be touching down outside the foundry's perimeter, then make our way towards it, quickly taking out any patrols we come across. At the foundry itself, we'd work our way through taking out any Blue Suns we find. We won't be able to free the workers safely if the Suns still have a strong presence.

And obviously, Vido is Zaeed's. But just to make sure he dies, the Normandy is patrolling the skies in a low orbit, still just out of visual from the refinery to prevent any Blue Suns from escaping.

The shuttle touched down in a clearing with a view of one of the foundry's smokestacks. Already, my HUD was reading high temperatures. 118 degrees Fahrenheit. Fortunately, the planet's high spore content would be blocked by the helmets we were all wearing. Except for Zaeed, that is. He wanted to make sure Vido saw his face. The moment we had all disembarked, the shuttle left us.

"Tapping into the fucker's comms. Watch for Ambushes," Zaeed stated as he took point. I allowed it.

"Squad Bravo, a shuttle landed near your location. Check it out," a gruff, angry voice ordered on Suns' comms. Zaeed's stance tightened.

"That's fucking him alright," the man growled. Our path ahead was coincidentally clear, but there was higher ground in the trees surrounding us.

"Garrus, I want you on overwatch. Head into the trees but stick close enough to cover us," I ordered. He nodded, readied his sniper, and made his way into the jungle. His visor should be able to keep us marked, synching with the Normandy for GPS. We continued through, weapons ready. Grunt was already agitated. Along the path, there was a trio of bodies all lying face down. Decaying rapidly, almost just scraps of their work clothes remaining. The bullet holes in their backs were still clear enough, but we could see the maggots of this world's insects writhing around inside.

"Shot in the back and left to rot. His fucking style alright," Zaeed grumbled, running his hand over the scar above his blinded eye. I marked the location of the bodies, and we pushed on.

"Shepard, I've got eyes on you and plenty of space to move around to keep up. I'm about fifty meters up and out. Bush is too thick to try further. There's a structure just ahead with Suns starting to fortify it."

"Understood. Happy hunting."

"If you head into the jungle just to the south around the rock there, you'll have an elevated position to ambush."

"I'm going through the front," Zaeed answered.

"Grunt, with him. Thane, you and I take position, Kasumi, you cloak and work your magic," I ordered.

"With pleasure," the thief cloaked and ran off, while Grunt and Zaeed waited to charge the front, Thane and I made our way to the point indicated by Garrus. A moment later, we were in position. Thane and I with our snipers out. I counted eight mercs, one of whom had a flamethrower, and was standing by two of his buddies.

"I've got the flamer; the explosion should kill his friends. Thane, Garrus, Kasumi, mark your targets. We shoot, kill, then Grunt and Zaeed push," I ordered. We singled ours out, and pulled the triggers, while I'm sure Kasumi used her combat knife. As for my target, the tank exploded immediately, blowing the wearer to chunks, the closest was sent flying in one direction, and his arm in another, and both of the other mercs were covered in flames, while three others dropped to the ground, dead. Grunt and Zaeed charged, killing the remaining two almost instantly.

"Squad Bravo, we heard gunfire by your position. Report!" A Suns officer, a Batarian, ordered. "I said report!" He paused. "Damn it, all squads fall back." Playing it safe? Must be Vido's personal tactics.

"This is Commander Santiago. If you retreat while the intruders are still alive, I'll kill you myself. If Bravo is down, they're heading to southern access. All squads, mass at the gatehouse now!"

"Hasn't fucking changed," Zaeed murmured.

"Garrus, get eyes on that gatehouse. Kasumi, I want you in cloak early. Move on." Past the bodies, we came to a maintenance bridge over a waterfall, the bridge already extended. We crossed and continued along the path.

"Got eyes on the gatehouse. They're waiting. You'll have to pass through a door in a large wall to be there. It's a killing field." Garrus informed.

"Got it, we'll hold at the door." Along the path, we passed what I'd consider a rather beautiful view. A valley out there with waterfalls, a setting sun, just a view that could be better without a large satellite dish. Ah, there's the large metal wall and door. Kasumi cloaked, we opened the door, there was a small 'hallway' of sorts between the door on this side of the wall and the gatehouse itself. I lost track of the small woman. We took positions at the sides of the door. I'd be hesitant to use the other side of the hallway for cover, as the mercs have elevation on us at the upper level of the gatehouse. At the center? A human male with tanned skin. And no helmet. Zaeed stepped out to stare him down. The other mercs had weapons out and trained, but not Vido.

"Zaeed Massani," his eyes were wide for a moment, then narrowed as he grinned. "You finally tracked me down," Zaeed growled, and raised his weapon, the mercs focused on Zaeed. Why aren't we shooting yet? "Don't be stupid," Vido rolled his eyes. "I've a whole company of bloodthirsty bastards behind me, ready to kill or be killed on my command. I saw Zaeed's head move slightly, he was scanning the area. "Ah fuck it, take your shot. Give my men a reason to put you down like the mad dog you are. Again," he chuckled.

"Shep, I'm on the catwalk," Kasumi informed.

"Garrus, take your shot. Kasumi, take one down." Garrus fired, Kasumi slit a throat, we began firing, mostly, covering so that we could get a good position. Zaeed ran up to the left, to a series of pipes and a valve. I saw one bullet strike a pipe by Vido, blasting out fumes. Zaeed took aim. Ah shit. "Kasumi! Get down here!" Zaeed fired again, and there was a fiery explosion that knocked Vido against a railing, and one merc down here with us. But I saw Kasumi's shimmering form land on her feet, just before the explosion.

"You just signed your death warrant, Massani!" Vido shouted. The remaining mercs began suppressing fire, Garrus taking down one of them, causing two of them to search for the sniper, but it would be near impossible to find him in all the jungle. I heard metal clanging on metal. Zaeed was beating on the valves of the pipes here with the butt of his rifle.

"The fuck are you doing, Zaeed?" He can't blow up the damn refinery, they're still workers here! But it was too late, the pipes started detonating, a chain reaction back up to the catwalk, killing the mercs, and more explosions out through the facility.

"Opening the gate," he answered as another explosion blew it open. I stood and approached the merc.

"You have any idea what you just did? Who knows how many fucking civilians you just killed?! Ones you're being paid to save!" I exclaimed. "We don't sacrifice lives for the mission. Not one!" I was right in his face now. He frowned.

"Like what? Wandering the jungle for hours, looking for a way in?" I gestured at Kasumi.

"We have a hacker! With a fucking cloak! If that fails, we rappel!"

"Oh. Hm, well, you want to waste time, I'm going to kill-" Fuck this. I clenched my right fist and slammed it right into his cheek, reeling him back and catching him by surprise.

"You are endangering both lives and the mission for selfish revenge! That is not acceptable! Never!" I shouted, jamming my finger to his chest. Zaeed rolled his jaw.

"You really want to do this?" he glared.

"I should knock you cold on the ground, but now, we have a refinery to save."

"Let them burn," Zaeed growled. "Vido dies, whatever the fucking cost!"

"That's not how we do things! He can't escape, and I told you that you'd have your revenge, but it has to be done right! Fall in fucking line!" I yelled. "Everyone, move! Garrus, you'll have to catch up!" I led the others through the blown door, the refinery was burning with the occasional explosion. Some bridges higher up had collapsed, but we just kept moving over the platform for a door when there was a voice behind us.

"Help! We're trapped!" one of the workers, a human male, called out terrified from a bridge above. "We can't get to the gas valves to shut them off! The whole place is going to explode!"

"Thane, Kasumi, get in there shut those valves down. Garrus, help them if they need it, or just join Grunt, Zaeed, and I. ASAP."

"At once, Shepard," Thane answered. They ran towards the refinery, guided by the worker, while the rest of us continued along the path after Vido. There were a handful of mercs struggling to reinforce, what with explosions still disrupting the battlefield. The chaos only made it easier for us. Grunt, it seemed, was having the time of his life fighting among all the explosions. Zaeed was silent, and I was still seething. We just had to keep moving and fast. Running and gunning. Eventually, running through the facility, we came across a flamer merc who had gotten crushed by debris. The flamethrower lying just outside of the debris. Its ammo would be much more limited without the tanks on the back, but it'll be enough. I picked it up and tossed it to Grunt.

"Have fun, just don't fry us."

"Heh, heh, heh," Grunt chuckled, making me immediately regret my decision. But it was too late, he charged ahead. We heard the screams of a pair of Turian mercs as we caught up, seeing both of them writhing on the ground, but getting slower and slower. We just had to keep moving. This time, into a larger, much more open area. If I'm not mistaken, I think this is where the refined product gets stored into its proper containers.

"You tapped into our fucking comms, didn't you?" Vido growled, still on the Suns' frequency. "I'll fucking kill all of you! I'll roast my own men to do it!" he grunted in pain. We took cover as we saw the Sun's had fortified it. With a YMIR mech.

"Shepard," Kasumi got on the comms. "The valves are shut, and the fire suppression is on. We're heading to regroup."

"Breaking off to join you then," Garrus added. With reinforcements coming, we kept on fighting. Grunt happily charging out and using his new flamethrower, and Zaeed and I covered him, targeting anyone who tried to put down the Krogan. But the YMIR mech would be something a bit different. It was on a catwalk far from us at the opposite side of the large room, and holding a defensive position, behind some low cover that the mercs had placed to protect the entirety of its torso while leaving both of its arms ready to fire, and its head to see. I have an idea, but we're going to need Thane. So we held position, mopping up the Suns, and two minutes later, the rest of the squad arrived.

"They're here. Can I kill this damn thing now?" Grunt growled.

"Thane, can you pull the crate aside and give Grunt a barrier?" I asked the Drell.

"Cover me." He answered. The rest of us rose from cover and fired at the mech to draw its attention. I know my biotics implant is repaired, but that was still a relatively recent surgery. The crate was flung to the side, allowing most of our bullets to more reliably hit the mech's shields. Then, an aura appeared, shimmering around the Krogan. Grunt roared, as he stormed ahead to the far catwalk. All the while we fired at the mech, but it was rightly registering Grunt as the largest threat. It attempted to fire a missile, but Grunt sidestepped and spun to avoid it, and finished his charge by tackling the mech to the ground, tearing off the metal plating protecting its chest by reaching in under its neck, then just began tearing out wires. We didn't have any more time to waste. I took point, Zaeed almost beside me as we ran ahead to make up for lost time.

"Grunt, fall in!" I ordered as we passed by. Fortunately, it registered, and he complied. We ran through just one long hallway, before reaching the outside. There was a gunship waiting on a landing pad, and limping towards it, Vido. Zaeed took aim and shot the side of the landing pad just in front of Vido. He turned, clearly terrified.

"Zaeed. Please!" The merc jumped down from the short ledge we were on to the ground, slowly, silently, continuing his approach. The rest of us kept our weapons trained on the gunship. Myself, with the rocket launcher. "It was nothing personal. Just business, I swear!" Vido tried to limp towards the gunship again. Zaeed shot him in the back of the knee of the leg he had been favoring. Vido grunted in pain and collapsed. "I-I-It was twenty years ago! Look at you! I did you a favor!" he panicked. Looking at the scene, I noticed Vido was on the ground right next to a fuel tank. One that was used to fuel the gunship, and they hadn't bothered to shut it off right in their hurry. Fuel was still pouring out, making an even larger puddle on the ground, that Vido was right in the middle of. "Zaeed! Please! I'm gonna die here, man!" Zaeed stowed his rifle, and drew his pistol, eying it. The gunship rose to the air and began to fly off.

"You bastards! Get back here!" Vido cried. Then, a familiar shape descended from the clouds, dwarfing the gunship. It fired just one of the ship's Javelin torpedoes, and it struck the gunship head on, destroying it as the ship flew back to orbit. "Oh, for fuck's sake…" Zaeed took aim and fired. First, at Vido's leg that had been wounded earlier, then both his arms. He screamed and cursed in pain.

"Fry, you son of a bitch," Zaeed uttered coldly. Turning on a dime, he ejected the thermal clip from his weapon so that it was launched right at the puddle of fuel. The moment it touched the puddle, it ignited, suddenly, violently. Engulfing Vido in flames. He screamed, dying, as Zaeed returned to us, expressionless. The fuel tank detonated, just adding to the image. When he had rejoined us, he turned to look back at the flames, Vido had stopped screaming. Zaeed pulled a cigar out from a pack at his belt, as well as a lighter. He savored the drag.

"We're not done here yet," I stated. "We'll secure the survivors, then get back to the ship. And after that, Zaeed?" He returned my look. "We need to talk."


	31. Getting To Know You

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Just making sure it's known. I ain't making this shit up about Tali being the one to invent the cyclonic barrier tech. That shit's canon. She's a genius.**

 **And I also want to answer the question from A13x who I can't respond to directly. For the rest of you, that question was about whether Shep would learn certain biotic abilities on the basis of how they're limited or spread to classes in multiplayer. My answer, is that the class system, I believe, is a lot more loose in how things would work in real life. For an N7, at least. Now, in my little take on the Mass Effect universe, any biotic (who actually develops their abilities with training and implants, not like some civvie Asari who just do nothing with their innate powers) can learn any ability. At least in theory. Some who are on the weaker end of the spectrum, who just don't have that much eezo to draw off of, have a harder time. Some they can only use in controlled environments and with strain. Shepard's implant, I'm certain, would allow him to use a wide range of different biotic abilities. (though he'd never be as powerful with them as Samara or Jack. Or a SAM boosted Scott in my Andromeda story. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Tali'Zorah**

I had felt the ship shake slightly as it does when speeding through a planet's atmosphere, and could hear the faint sound of torpedo's firing. If I was in engineering, or any other deck, I'd doubt I'd be able to hear it. They must have detected a Blue Suns shuttle attempting to flee. Maybe that... Vido was aboard. I returned to my work. I had been trying to think of a way to improve the ship's kinetic barriers. Unfortunately, this tech is limited. Mass disruptor torpedoes have, for example, been designed to completely counteract the effects of kinetic barriers. Their own mass effect field increases their mass to a point where the barrier can't hold it back, then the warhead itself can detonate and damage or destroy its target. The only counter to that are GARDIAN laser defense systems to take the torpedoes out before they hit. But I recently had an idea. I simply haven't had the time to work out the math yet to find out if my idea could work. It was, in fact, Kal who had given me the idea, though he didn't realize it.

Before we had arrived on Haestrom, Kal was sparring with one of the younger marines, newer to the squad. He wasn't that new to the marines, he was experienced, and this mission would be to see if he was capable of being a more permanent addition to Kal's team. Fortunately, Saato survived with just a wound. Kal's going to need the new blood. Anyways, Saato had had some level of martial arts training, but not much. Kal was fixing that. Despite going against his Commanding Officer, and one from a family with a long history of military service both in the Fleet and back on Rannoch, Saato had at least some measure of confidence. He was larger than Kal, and while we were setting up our camps on Haestrom, he quickly earned himself the nickname of Baunhor, a pack animal back on Rannoch. During the sparring match, Saato relied on his strength, naturally. He went to hit hard. Most of the time, Kal avoided the blows all together, striking back whenever he had the opportunity But a few times, he made a point of not avoiding his attacks at all, but rather redirecting it. After he had beaten Saato to the ground, he, of course, helped him back up and started the verbal part of the lesson. Outwitting one's opponent, using their moves against them. Their weight. Their momentum.

Avoiding an attack is good, but if you can redirect the attack, to take its momentum and force it in another direction, it's even better. True, you can't punish your foe by avoiding or redirecting an enemy attack in space combat, but perhaps I can configure a barrier to redirect an attack. It won't be easy, and it'll be an extensive and expensive install and modification if this can work. I finished typing in my Omni-tool. The calculations should be complete, now, just to begin the trial and error of running simulations.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

Zaeed had been both calm, and quiet for the rest of the mission as we secured the surviving workers. He is goddamned lucky that the explosions had given the workers some measure of warning, as well as alarms, to get to relative safety. The refinery's own safeties would have normally kicked in automatically to cut the flow of fuel and the fire suppression system would activate, but to squeeze more out of the refinery, the Suns had turned off more or less all of the safety systems. Altogether, it would have been far worse if the explosions originated within the refinery itself, but it could have been better. If he was Alliance, and… I guess if I was still Alliance, I haven't gotten any updates on my status with them yet, Zaeed would have been dishonorably discharged on the spot. But as it stands, it's tricky. I still need him for this mission, but I also can't afford to have this repeat. That's what the little chat with Zaeed eventually boiled down to. I was still pissed, and he knew it. Yet his demeanor was… at ease. Relaxed. He didn't regret his actions but admitted he'd have been fine with one of the alternate methods of entry I listed off after I punched him, he was just seeing nothing but red. While it doesn't excuse him, I'm guilty of acting irrationally because of anger before. Like with Cerberus, or with Elanos Haliat. As for whether or not this could happen again, Zaeed assured me that, for the first time in his life, he has no ambitions. No ulterior motives. He's got his contracts, and that's it. And if his contract states that he follows my orders to the letter, even on a suicide mission? Then that's fine by him. Offing Vido could be considered the last box on his bucket list.

It'll have to do. Once the workers had all been secured and Eldfell-Ashland was signaled for a safe pickup, we returned to the Normandy. It remained quiet all the way back to the ship, and the moment we were aboard, Joker began to journey to the Citadel. Everyone went their separate ways for the rest of the day, though after a visit with Tali, I told Kasumi to expect me in her quarters. Once I was back in regular clothes, I made my way to the med-bay. Tali was working on her omni-tool, completely enamored by it. And Chakwas was just at her desk. She noticed me enter, but not Tali.

"She's been working since you went off on the mission. I remember her begging me to clear her for regular duty, but by the sound of it, you should want her to finish… this, before sending her back to engineering," the doc remarked. Chakwas speaking up, of course, got Tali's attention, her eyes widened for a moment as she saw, and she allowed a wave before returning to work, as to not interrupt Chakwas.

"Is this about those shield upgrades you mentioned?" I asked. Tali began her answer without even looking up.

"Yes. Instead of a static kinetic barrier, this one will cycle to deflect projectiles, in particular, disruptor torpedoes, instead of just absorbing the energy and pushing it back."

"Like a parry or deflect?"

"Exactly. The math works, but with the barrier emitters we have, the rate at which the barriers cycle would either be far too slow, leaving us vulnerable to any other form of fire, or it can go at the speeds it needs, but the emitters overheat in seconds. So now what I have to do is design an entirely new form of emitter. Maybe ones that spin on their own for the sake of the cycle. In theory, you could be shot through it, but it would be like shooting a target inside a spinning ball. One that's spinning fast. It's very unlikely."

"And… you're designing this. All on your own. Right now? Before anyone else has?"

"Yes."

"You realize that this is going to be an invention that completely revolutionizes barrier technology, right? And that you're going to be hailed as a fucking genius for this?"

"...Uh…" she actually stopped, processing it. "N-no, it's just a little bit of thinking… differently."

"Outside the box thinking is what gave humanity some of its greatest achievements and advancements. Face it, a few hundred years from now, every engineer is going to learn your name in a textbook for this."

"He's right, you know," Chakwas piped up from her own desk. She was getting embarrassed, wringing her hands.

"Can we… talk about something else, please?" she asked.

"Alright, alright. I'll hold off singing your praise for now," I relented.

"Thank you," she sighed. "So. How'd the mission go? I know we shot something down." I frowned.

"Could have gone a helluva lot easier than it did. Vido was definitely down there and seeing him got Zaeed unhinged. Maybe some of it was the taunting as well. Sure, Zaeed had good reason to be unhinged by Vido, but he put the mission and the worker's lives in jeopardy needlessly. Caused a chain reaction through the fuel pipes, and I had to send Thane and Kasumi to put out fires and secure the workers while Grunt, Zaeed, and I chased down Vido."

"What about Garrus? And how bad was it?"

"Garrus was in an overwatch position in the jungle before and as we entered the facility. He was catching up. As for how bad, could have been worse than it was. The Sun's had turned off the safeties, but the workers could hear the explosions before it reached them. In the end, minimal worker casualties, and that's including those Vido had already killed before we got there. And Zaeed got his revenge. Before we left, he and I had a talk. Came to an understanding. I won't forgive him for what he did, but I can look past it for the mission," I explained.

"At least there's that. So, to the Citadel, right? To help Kasumi?"

"Yeah, we'll stop at the Citadel but Kasumi and maybe a standby ground team for emergencies are going to take a shuttle to Bekenstein, let the crew be on leave."

"And after that?"

"See Anderson, both to chat and see if he can help us procure something to help with Jack's request, talk to Hackett maybe, and see if Kaidan is there. I'll send a message ahead of time after we're done here. And hey, maybe you and I can have a do-over of Illium, eh?" I smirked. "You are sounding better, after all."

"Don't get any ideas, I'm not clearing her for combat yet," Chakwas called out. Tali slumped, annoyed a little.

"My throat is still sore, and while I'm not sneezing so much, my sinuses are still clogged," she admitted. "But I'd still enjoy the 'do-over.'"

"I'll allow another dinner, and I'll allow you to leave my direct care on the Citadel, but not for work."

"And I want you to keep working on the new shield tech rather than your regular work down in the drive core. The others down there can handle it until this is done," I added.

"I can accept that," Tali nodded.

"Good. Now, I need to talk to Kasumi about the plan for Bekenstein. So I'm going to send that message to the Citadel, then talk to her. In the meantime, you keep that giant brain of yours at work," I remarked.

"The size of the brain has nothing-"

"Human figure of speech," I laughed. "It might not be how it actually works but we say it anyway."

I took my leave of the med-bay, and in the mess, having a protein bar, I typed up and sent a message. Just letting Anderson know we were on our way to the Citadel, letting him know that business was going to take me away for the first day or two, and saying that I'd like updates on the Alliance side of things and to see about seeing Kaidan when I'm back. With that done, I went to the lounge to see Kasumi. She had claimed half of the lounge but was careful to leave the bar and the holo-pod free of her own items. In the other half, there was a bed, a bookshelf with physical books, drawers, and cabinets with some of what I'd assume to be her memorabilia. A rose, some kind of a stone bust, and she also had a strange, but interesting painting on the wall. Kasumi was lying in her bed, head on her pillow, but her legs crossed as she held a book over her, reading.

"Hey Shep," Kasumi smiled, turning her head to her side, setting her book down on her left, and rolled over onto her right side, holding her head up with a hand.

"Kasumi. You seem to be alright, despite the close call on Zorya."

"I might have been a bit hot under the hood, in more than one way, but I let you handle it. Not sure I want to screw with Zaeed, least, not without my cloak. So, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Bekenstein. What's the plan?"

"Of course, Mr. Gunn," Kasumi kept her smile as she sat up, legs crossed in front of her. I raised a brow. "Your cover name. Solomon Gunn. Can't have you going in as Shepard, after all. I've already got your cover well established. Smaller time arms dealer in the Terminus looking to make his way up and to worm into Council space, and an interview in Badass monthly. No, Gunn doesn't really exist, but I fabricated him with enough depth to get an invitation secured."

"Suppose that would be easier to do in Terminus," I mused, impressed by the fabrication.

"Especially with my contacts. Now, you will be wearing a full tux for the party. I've got your measurements and the tux is waiting on the Citadel, as well as the gift for Hock. A mandatory addition, but not one useless to the plan. It is going to take up the hold of the shuttle, though. So, you and I.

"What kind of gift is this thing?"

"A 'gold' statue of your old friend Saren. At the base, there's a secret compartment that'll store your weapons and armor. You won't need a disguise in the vault, after all, and if it's ever going to get loud, it's in there while we're making the get-away," she explained.

"How'll we get in?"

"I won't know until I get eyes on the vault. I'll be able to get us in, but the only information I could get on the vault is its location. Accessible through the party, below the water feature in the center."

"And the get-away?"

"The vault does have more than one entrance, and the one we're going to use as an exit is one we absolutely can't use as an entrance. It's guarded with checkpoints that we won't be able to just sneak around. If we're lucky, coming up from behind, we might be able to take them out quietly while we get to the landing pad, with a shuttle waiting."

"And all you want is the gray-box?"

"Yes. I'll store a bag for each of us, though, on the off chance we see something, we're not eager to leave without. You can consider it me paying you."

* * *

 **Tali'Zorah**

John… is right, I suppose. But I shouldn't get that much credit. Kal gave me the idea from basic CQC, I only had time to work on it because I was sick, and I need to make sure we survive the Omega-4. Any quality engineer would do the same in my position. _That's how father taught you to think. Mother would try to pick you up and spin you in the air cheering, praising you, and being amazed if she were here. And Auntie-Raan would be right beside her. They'd be full of pride. They'd want me to be proud._ No, pride is a distraction. There's nothing more important to my people than the fleet. I'm nothing, they are everything. The door to the med-bay opened, it was Kasumi.

"Hi Tali, Chakwas," the small human woman smiled. "Shepard told me what you were working on. Impressive. Really hope to see it work out."

"Thank you, Kasumi."

"No, thank you. If it does work out, it's all the more likely we'll survive. That's something I'd very much like to do," she remarked. "But, changing topic, you should have seen Shepard when he told me. He was gushing about you."

"Gushing?"

"Excited. Saying he couldn't believe how he had a genius for a girlfriend." I heard Chakwas chuckle quietly. I blushed, thankful for my mask. "You've got him wrapped around your finger." Another human phrase I didn't recognize. She saw my moment of confusion. "I mean you could ask him for or to do anything and he'd do it instantly and then some because he's just that crazy about you." I blushed brighter.

"I-I'm sure you're just exaggerating."

"Not at all. I remember how Keiji and I talked and acted towards one another. I see the same look on Shepard when he talks or sees you. But enough about that. I thought we'd talk. Get to know each other."

"I'm not opposed, but, why?" I asked.

"Well, we're working together, sure, but I like you. And hey, we already have a few things in common. We're both small, cute, and we both wear hoods," she smiled. I was a bit cautious about telling her too much, with her being a thief by trade, but something about her friendliness was… infectious. Genuine.

"Ask, but I can't promise I'll answer."

"Fine by me. So, what was it like growing up on the fleet?"

"Much closer together than I've seen anywhere else. And even the children have to pitch in to help on most ships. But I grew up on a liveship. We still had to help after our schooling every day, but there were so many adults on board as well, so the work was less than on smaller ships. They do what they can to keep the work fair, but supplies always have to be unloaded and loaded, and there's always something somewhere that needs to be fixed or replaced."

"I'm sorry your childhood couldn't be more of, well, a childhood. It must have been scary having a home always being fixed."

"It's just something we're used to," I shrugged. Kasumi looked down for a moment then back.

"And your parents?"

"My father's a member of the Admiralty board, and that always took most of his time. When he was around, he was always tired, and he's always been strict, always pushing me to be better. Mother was around much more, and much more supportive. So long as I tried my best, she was happy. She died a few years ago when bad filters let a disease spread," I ended quietly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

"I miss her, but I still have good memories of her. I remember how she never wore her suit within our home, instead, wearing clothes leftover from our exodus, handed down through her family. I remember thinking she was the most beautiful woman in the galaxy. I felt safer with my suit on, but I would have my helmet off with her and she taught me to care for my hair," I smiled fondly at the memory.

"I didn't know you still had hair in those suits," Kasumi remarked.

"We do, but it's short. Our helmets don't let it grow much. But when I was younger, having it off more frequently with my mother let it grow down to my shoulders. It's short again now, though."

"Maybe you should let it grow again sometime," Kasumi suggested.

"Maybe. I just haven't had time. My turn for questions?"

"Sure."

"How about you growing up?"

"I was born in Tokyo, Japan, raised there by my grandmother and the streets. Despite her best efforts," she giggled. "Don't get me wrong, I love her, and had no problems at home other than just being lower income. My father entered the Aokigahara when I was still a baby, and my mother made use of alcohol and drugs. I don't know what happened to her, but she was out of my life a few months after my father. I don't remember either of them," Kasumi explained.

"Wait, I'm sorry, what did your father enter?"

"That didn't translate, did it? It's an infamous forest outside of Tokyo. The rest of Earth knows it as 'The Suicide Forest.'"

"Keelah, that's terrible."

"Our culture looks down on men who struggle to provide for their families. They're taught to feel ashamed, and I know my family was struggling then."

"What drove you to the streets?" I asked, changing the topic.

"Personal choice, mostly. I'm a bit of a kleptomaniac," she chuckled. "And I've always been a mischief maker, but I was good at it. And it helped that the city was crowded. Grandma just wanted me to be a good little girl, go to school, get a job, find a nice boy. I like to think I did. I did go to school, though I don't think I… applied it as she wanted. I got an… illegitimate job I'm good at, and I found a good man. Only thing I haven't done is give her great grand-babies."

"Is she still around?"

"In this day and age, she's still alive and well. I send her messages every once in a while, others, see her. I've given her enough money to retire safely, but I can't even begin to explain how many proxies that went through."

"That's nice of you."

"It's the least I can do for her. She doesn't know what I've been doing all these years, though. She thinks I'm an accountant on the Citadel." Kasumi smiled.

"You can't tell your grandmother of your real occupation? I'm not sure I'll ever be able to tell my father about my boyfriend," I chuckled.

"Alright, maybe yours is a little worse."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Logan Paul, no, get out of here. We ain't having any more of your shit with that damn forest. And no, I didn't know the Japanese name for that forest before a google search. I just put the Japanese name to be a pretty clear way of saying that Kasumi just talks in Japanese, and, thus, goes through the translator so we hear English. (No, I don't plan to research fancy japanese words that slip through the translator, because I figure that all of a single species individual languages get translated flawlessly because of how long they've been translated to one another and everything, then adapted to the translator tech. But with whole new languages with whole new sets of rules, and with Khelish being a bit more remote in use because how Quarians are in the galaxy, for us, non-human languages are the ones that only ever have errors.)**


	32. The Heist

**Commander John Shepard**

I straightened my suit just outside the med-bay, not paying attention to any glances I may have been getting. We had been on the Citadel for about two hours. Kasumi had gotten me my tux right away and demanded I put it on immediately, and waited. When I stepped out of my quarters dressed, she hummed, looking me up and down, then straightening out a cuff or part of the jacket, almost just like my mother used to do.

"Perfect. You should go show Tali. I'm going to make sure the statue gets secured," Kasumi suggested. And that was a pretty good idea. With a smirk on my face, I entered the med-bay. Tali was at work, running through the designs for her new shield tech.

"So, how do I look?" I asked.

"Hm? Oh," she looked over. " _Oh…_ " Hell yeah. Satisfied with myself, I looked over, ignoring Chakwas chuckle. I watched her eyes behind the mask running her eyes over my body. "You… look good," she managed.

"Thanks. Kasumi and I are off to Bekenstein in an hour. She had the wonderful idea that I show myself off to you before we go."

"I'll… be sure to thank her." Oh, bold of her. I smirked. It wasn't lost on me that her attempt at being bold was both slow to come out, and that it was laced with uncertainty. Not so much on the claim, but the delivery.

"I can pass it along."

We spent what we could of the remaining time talking. Part of it about her progress on the shield tech, still coming along and getting closer to the answer. Then about the plan. She didn't like that backup would be so far behind, but I'll trust Kasumi. Play our cards right, and even if we do have to shoot our way out, I think we can manage.

Currently, I was piloting the shuttle away from the Normandy's dock, and towards the beacon that marks where ships can safely initiate FTL travel to the Boltzmann system. True, EDI was connected to the ship via QEC, but, other than me wanting to pilot something after a long time, and the fact a part of me is still nervous about EDI, despite the fact she's basically controlling our getaway, I was piloting. Kodiak shuttles aren't designed for Mass Relay transit, but they are capable of short range FTL travel, provided one discharges the core soon after. It's enough to suit our purpose. This part of the journey required at least some level of focus. Mostly just to be aware of any alerts so that our paths didn't intersect with any other ships in system. But once we were in FTL, I was able to get my thoughts together. First, Bekenstein. I doubt most of this will help with the op anyway, but I like to know our destinations. The Colony was founded in 2158 by the Alliance, surprisingly. Apparently, the other races simply hadn't laid a claim on it during our first wave of colonization when we joined the Galactic stage. It's essentially our commercial hub and our planetary entrance to the Citadel markets. The entire colony is made to focus on manufacturing. At first it didn't go so well, and anything Bekenstein sold was just for novelty. But during the second wave, they changed things up and focused on luxury goods and high-quality entertainment. Bekenstein is also home to "New Hollywood." The name says it all. Hollywood back on Earth is still booming, but here is the one we have right by the Citadel. As a result, Bekenstein boasts itself on being home to more millionaires and billionaires per capita than any other Human colony. As for crime, it's pretty much all white-collar and nonviolent. Unfortunately, it's suicide and inflation rates are among the highest in all the Alliance. There's virtually no unemployment because it's too expensive to live there without a job already lined up. Where Hock fits in so well is that those who make it on Bekenstein have a bit of an ego. The tycoons there just love to flaunt their money. With all the money flowing into the planet, and the fronts he owns, no matter how much the Alliance 'suspects' his hands are dirty, being so cozy with the Eclipse, there's no damn proof.

"So, any other details?" I asked.

"Nothing, really, but I am going to run things over with you one more time. What's your cover?"

"Solomon Gunn, arms dealer in the Terminus."

"Good, don't mention the small time part, probably bristle if someone points that out. As part of the business you run a small but talented group of mercs. It's exactly the type of person Hock respects. I won't make you memorize all the interviews and articles, you just need to not talk business with anyone. I double checked and made sure you can keep your Phalanx, just keep it concealed. They won't hassle you over a sidearm and it'll only help you fit in. Here," Kasumi handed me my gun from beside her seat. "I took it out while it was being loaded. You can put it inside either side of your jacket. Next?"

"Make our way in, locate the vault, figure out the security then take it down. Get inside the vault, take the Graybox."

"Exactly." Kasumi looked out into the black void of FTL. "And I'll finally get a chance to say goodbye," she murmured.

"Getting the Graybox means a lot to you, doesn't it?" I asked quietly. Kasumi sighed.

"His Graybox is full of priceless, personal memories. It's all that remains of who he was."

"What about the memories in your own Graybox?"

"It's… different. With how they work, it's like there's still a part of him. I could hear his voice again, I could see him again. Instead of just the memory, it's actually hearing it all over again. Besides," she changed her tone, forcing away the somber atmosphere. "There's that dangerous intel he told me he found. We can't let that stay in Hock's hands, can we?"

"Fair enough."

We spent the rest of the journey in silence. Understandable, it's a sensitive topic for Kasumi. I just tried to get some shut-eye before we would transition out of FTL. Right on schedule, we came out just outside of Beckenstein's orbit and made our way down towards Hock's mansion, just outside the capital of Milgrom. It was big alright. Built on the side of one of the mountains outside the main city with a few other large mansions. And I suspect this one has a large amount of underground space too. The windows facing both the street/skycar landing pad, and the city were almost entirely glass. It was probably officially about three or four stories, but in the main ballroom, there's nothing overhead until the top of the house, rather than another floor. We made our way down towards the landing pad and one of the specific shuttle slots lit green to indicate that was where we should land. We touched down, and one of Hock's "Corporate Security" goons walked up to the shuttle. It was black armor with a pair of white stripes on the left arm and the inverted triangle with Hock's name as a logo on the right on his chest.

"I'm just going to cloak now, and follow behind you. Your names on the list so he shouldn't give you any trouble." I nodded as Kasumi shimmered and faded from view. Though I could see the ripple in the air as she moved. I opened the shuttle's doors and made my way out to meet the goon.

"Name?"

"Solomon Gunn," I frowned, putting on the act. He opened his Omni-tool and checked his list.

"I see the gift. Don't suppose you want to bring that in yourself," he murmured.

"You want to say that again?" I responded, furrowing my brows. Grumpy, the goon said nothing.

"Michaels! Over here," he called out. His buddy made his way over. "Gonna need to scan you." I said nothing, but his scan of me did go red as it went over the pistol. I opened the jacket enough to show it. "Just keep it holstered. It was now that 'Michaels' arrived. The two began to inspect the statue of the Rogue Spectre and quickly found a button on its backside that activated a very small mass effect field that would let it hover just over the ground to make moving it that much easier. Once it was out of the shuttle, they scanned it too. Something in the base seemed to screw with it, but not nearly as much as the handgun. At that moment, a figure in a white suit, mustache, small triangle beard just under his lip, and thin sideburns walked out. Jesus, Hock really does look like a Bond villain.

"Hold on a moment, sir."

"Is there a problem, Gentleman?" Hock asked his men. His accent was South African, but a part of me couldn't help but think there was a hint of Scottish.

"No sir, scanners are just off with the statue." Hock studied the statue, and me.

"I don't believe we've met. Donovan Hock." He didn't offer his hand. Neither would I.

"Solomon Gunn."

"Sir. The scanners aren't picking anything up," the guard seemed more confused now than anything else. Should be Kasumi's handiwork. Hock studied the statue again.

"I don't think our guests would come all the way here from Illium to cause trouble. Do you?" Hock turned back to me. "You and your gift may pass through, Mr. Gunn, with my apologies," he nodded, hands behind his back. I nodded in response. Hock entered his house again first, and I followed behind at a distance. The door had shut by the time I was there. There were a few guests in the entry hall talking. A mix of nonsense and less than reputable acts. Damn, wish I was recording all this so I could take the evidence to the Alliance or Citadel, but suppose I won't hear enough anyway to get past their lawyers. Most of the guests were human, probably in part because of Bekenstein's population. There were also Asari, in less numbers, as well as some Salarians, in fewer. Assuming everyone here has their fingers in a few white collar crimes, Asari are obviously damn good at the long con, smaller amounts over longer times, then as they learn later, they can really get the big numbers, and Salarians are damn thorough, but can put so much more work into it. Their successful white collar criminals either succeed outside Salarian space, or because they are really, really damn good.

"I'll go find the Vault. Pretty sure I know where it is, but go look at some of the artwork," Kasumi suggested on comms. I did as suggested, the artwork was to the left of the water feature in the center of the ballroom. It was all the really expensive modern kind of art that just… for the life of you, you can't fucking tell what's going on. Or at least I can't. Maybe some Art majors can figure this shit out, but I'd bet good money that's just them pulling some sort of interpretation out of their ass that has nothing to do with the artist's actual inspiration. I really hope Kasumi finds the vault soon. "Exactly where I thought. There's a staircase right by you, leads to a hallway the vault entrance is in." Kasumi informed. Come on down, it's not watched. Probably wants people to find it and be amazed at the security, then frustrate themselves trying to open it." Figuring it would be better to not speak, I just made my way down. I saw the shimmer right in the middle, waiting. She must have been purposefully moving, just enough for me to notice. "Just walk on through." The entrance to the vault's… entrance, was apparently just a projection. Inside the antechamber was the entrance that was both locked, obviously, and secured by some laser security system. And to the right, the statue of Saren. It really was damn lifelike. Honestly, I don't know whether to hate him, pity him, or both. He helped put a stop to Sovereign in the end, sure. He was indoctrinated for a while, sure, but Anderson confirmed that he was a nigh genocidal asshole long before that too. It also didn't help the moment that in the statue's pose, it was staring right back at me. Virmire quickly flashed to my mind, just after we saved Kaidan and the Salarians. Just before Ashley was lost in the explosion.

"Shep?" Kasumi asked, snapping me back to the present. She had decloaked.

"Sorry," I focused on her.

"I got an understanding of the vault. Obviously, kinetic barrier. See the mic here? Password protected voice lock. And a DNA scanner. My guess… EX-700 series. Everything a vault needs to be impenetrable," Kasumi mused, putting a hand to her chin.

"Sounds like a challenge."

"Please, remember who you're talking to," she scoffed, not at all actually insulted.

"Voice lock? Voice sample. You'll have to chat up the big man for that. But we'll have to find a password too. DNA? Easy. Take a gander in Hock's private quarters. Barrier? Cut the power. These security systems don't power themselves and take from the building's power. Look, see these wires? It leads back up to the main floor. If we can make the security hub be on the… less attentive side, it shouldn't be noticed. Besides, I'd bet on the hub or Hock's quarters having the password. Keiji could get through a system like this in his sleep. And I'm better," Kasumi explained, full of confidence. Get back up, I'll follow the power lines, so we know where best to cut it off from. But don't talk to Hock yet. Meander around, get a feel for the place. Maybe you'll find something." I nodded, and we made our way back up, Kasumi already back under cloak. On the opposite side of the ballroom there was more art, as well as another Corporate guard by the entrance to Hock's bedroom, judging by the known layout of the building. I noticed that the art here was much more comprehensible than the other. A close up of a bird, a lake scenery in an alpine region, what I think was a flower, and a desert with maybe a settler touching their shuttle down by a large rock formation. This art I can understand and appreciate. Let's try outside. The balcony was just as elegant as the inside, but you couldn't go too far out as there was another water feature taking up that space with some seating areas. What stood out more than anything, was an Asari flanked by two members of the Eclipse, as obvious by their armor, and the fact they were carrying more than just pistols. The Asari was studying everyone, all with an angry look to herself. Like she was imagining killing all of us if it suited her. Jona Sederis, must be. Founder of Eclipse. She studied me closely, we glared at each other as I kept up the persona of Solomon Gunn. She found some sort of humor in the mess.

Still, I tried to keep an eye peeled for anything. At the far side, I noticed one of the Corporate goons was actually having a chat with a guest. I made my way over to eavesdrop, and thanks to Cerberus, I could do that from more of a distance than usual.

"Samuels' shot the idea down," the guard whispered. "I'd love to get out of here with you, but it's Chief Roe on duty and I've seen what happens to anyone who pisses her off. You want your boyfriend six feet under, or owing you one?"

"Fine, fine," the man he was standing next to sighed. Chief Roe, and she's a hardass. Ok, maybe we can use that. I made my way back inside and passed that along to Kasumi.

"I think we could use that, but I'll need to tap into their comms first. Also, I found a spot to cut the power. It's behind a statue on the bookshelves by the right little art annex. Go chat up Hock. He doesn't look too interested in his current conversation," she suggested. Right, he does look bored. I nodded, suspecting Kasumi would see it. "I'll be recording. I just need enough for a voice print. Do what you can." I made my way over to Hock, both him and a strange, globe like piece of art adorning the top of the main water feature in front of me. He quickly noticed my approach, and took that as his chance to get out of his current conversation.

"Ah, Mr. Gunn. I hope you're having a good time. I know you must have come here hoping for a chance to meet a friend of mine, Vido Santiago. I hope the… loss of that opportunity has not soured your evening." Not surprised Vido would have been here.

"Vido's death just told me he's not as clever as I had heard. Yet the security here surprises me. What petty thief would try and break into the home of Donovan Hock?"

"Ah, Gunn. You are Terminus based, so I can understand the misunderstanding. But I believe we could do business more directly someday, and for that to happen, you must understand things from the more… 'civilized' worlds of the galaxy." He nearly spat the word civilization, as if thinking it was a bad joke. "You already understand our line of work attracts a certain element. Few understand the pains we all take to keep the barbarians, like Blood Pack, at bay." Hock turned towards the water feature, speaking just a little bit louder. And the crowd began to silence, listening. "People these days want comfort, entertainment, love. They don't see the galaxy is fragile." True, but he's obviously about to take it somewhere it shouldn't. He turned back to me. "They only have to worry about simple luxuries. Why? Because people like me, and you, are doing the terrible things that keep the Galaxy spinning." Yep. He even thinks like a Bond villain. "This party is for us. The cleaners. The support structure for the Galaxy's gleeful delusions of peace. May there always be a market for the things we do," he finished. The crowd gave their applause. They really do think their actions are justified, do they?

Disgusting.

"Well that's more than enough," Kasumi remarked.

"Enjoy the party, Mr. Gunn." I took my leave.

"Come near the left staircase upstairs. The door will open when you get there, just walk through," Kasumi explained. I can do that. I didn't like how there were a group of guests hanging around by the door, but if it opens for me, and I walk in with enough confidence, then they won't pay it much mind, will they? I noticed Kasumi's faint shimmer by the door as it opened. It opened to a small hallway and the door closed behind us. "Stand in the corner near the door. I'm going to open it and go through, take out as many as I can. One should come through to investigate, you take them out. Try not to fire your gun, I'm not sure how soundproof these walls are."

"Got it. Following your lead." I readied my Phalanx, just in case, nonetheless. The door opened and the shimmer vanished through the door.

"The hell?" A woman murmured on the other side, followed by some guns unfolding, ready. "Cover me." I could hear her walking closer. She made the stupid mistake of having her pistol sticking out towards the end of the hall rather than just immediately turning to check a corner upon entrance. I grabbed the barrel of her Carnifex and yanked it towards me. She nearly lost her grip, and I pulled her out into the hall, and the stumble let me grab her and pull her into the corner with ease as I put her in a chokehold.

"The two inside are down," Kasumi stated.

"Hear ya. Lady's going night-night," I responded as the guard started to go limp, passing out. I brought her back inside the security room, and Kasumi and I hog-tied them and gagged them. Heh, it seems they were slacking a bit. They were watching some cartoon with a Krogan in the middle of a shootout. A data pad caught Kasumi's eye.

"Password for the vault tonight is Peruggia. Name of the man who stole the Mona Lisa. Give me a moment to tap into their comms and mash together the voice sample. You go back to the party, have a drink. Think I've got a way to sneak into Hock's bedroom."

"Don't want me to handle it?"

"I could probably pretend to be Roe and make the guard let you in, but there's the chance I'll sound nothing like her, and if a guest notices you enter and asks Hock about it? Plenty of red flags. Let the lady with a cloak handle this one."

"Good luck," I nodded. I hurried back to the party, guests giving me curious glances as they saw me come back, but said nothing. I spent the time waiting either sipping on some expensive wine, which, considering wine generally isn't my style, this wasn't that bad. Anyone who looked like they might want to ask some questions, I just made sure I kept an intimidating stance and look to make it look like I wasn't the conversation type.

"I've got a sample. Head down to the vault and start getting ready. I'll be right there with the power cut," Kasumi stated. Perfect. I made my way down and sent the unlock signal to the base of the Saren statue, opening it up with our gear, then started stripping down to my skivvies. I can't wear a tux under the armor or it's under suit, after all. I almost surprised myself with how careful I was being with the tux. I really do think I should hold onto this. I can leave it in one of the bags. Suddenly, the kinetic barrier around the door shut off. Good, Kasumi has that covered. Alright, that's all off, fold it up, and get the under suit, and… hm. I have the sudden and strange sensation that I'm being watched. I glanced behind me towards the illusionary door. Sure enough, the little klepto was there. I just raised a brow.

"I swear I only just got here. And any picture I may or may not have taken was for Tali's benefit," she decloaked. I just chuckled, shaking my head as worked on the under suit, Kasumi got the rest of her own gear. The under suit didn't take too long, but the armor, naturally took longer. Kasumi helped speed it up, at least. All my weapons were clipped to my back as they should be, and I slung a mostly empty duffel bag over my shoulder. Kasumi got the vault open with the DNA scanner, and a perfect copy of Hock saying "Peruggia." She took the first step, checking for cams, and setting one onto a feedback loop from before the door opened. I followed, and the door closed, an elevator taking us down into the vault itself. About thirty seconds later, it stopped, and a large heavy door opposite of where we entered opened into a large, wide open space. Statues, models, art. Everything was priceless. And several caught my eye immediately. One in particular, made me angry.

"The _fuck_?!" I exclaimed. "This son of a bitch has Lady Liberty's head?!"

"How did he manage that? It vanished in 2098."

"It was probably being traded by fuckheads just like Hock to go on their private displays," I growled.

"This really has you riled up," Kasumi remarked.

"Damn right it does," I glanced back at her, gesturing at the head. "I'm Alliance, but I'm also American. For 210 years that statue was a beacon and icon for everything America stood for. Anyone immigrating from Europe saw her first welcoming them, and then some fuckheads who didn't like America formally uniting with Canada and Mexico thought they should blow the damned thing up! They forced us into another civil war. Sure, there's a new one now, but, still. It's not the one the French made for us when we won our freedom. Goddamn it was probably on its way here where those photos of it popped up."

"Patriot through and through, huh?"

"To the Red, White, and Blue." I sighed. "Let's find the Graybox." Despite my suggestion, both of us still felt tempted to look around. Behind lady liberty were models of the Conduit on the Citadel, made of gold, of course. An Egyptian statue of some ancient Pharaoh, still in good condition.

"Even outside the Alliance, I could get a lot of money for this. Asari go crazy for this kind of stuff," Kasumi mused. Beside that was a statue almost identical to the ones I saw on Illos. Kasumi was unsettled. And after that-oh, come the fuck on, Hock. Missing a leg, the right arm, and cracked in several places, Michelangelo's fucking _David._

"Damn bastard is robbing us of our history." I noticed that beyond that there were several Krogan statues as well. Browned and chipped, and clearly old. They were wielding swords that looked more like giant cleavers, or large two headed axes in various poses. Robbing the Krogan too. Those must go back before they were uplifted.

"Ugh, Rachni queen," Kasumi noticed. A gold model of one, but fortunately, rather scaled down. "Not going to complain that they're gone." I'll… just let her keep believing that. Other pieces I could make less out of. More akin to modern art, I'd say. Kasumi claimed some of those weirder ones were Turian. And they don't often become artists. The last of the large stone statues of note, was some sort of giant horned creature, almost frozen in a roar. A spiked shoulder pad, maybe meant to be some kind of leather. It had long, elf like ears, but was far from being remotely like any kind of elf. Something like an Ogre, I suppose. Near that, a model of a Turian ship. Maybe… Cruiser?

"The Kara. I hear it's like a Turian Titanic. But, space."

"Explains why the make seems weird to me. Seems like a Cruiser, but different from their modern ones."

"Naturally. It was before they made contact with anyone else, after all." Only one area to check now, and that's probably where the Graybox is. Two columns, three stands on each side, right in front of lady liberty. There was another Krogan statue, some expensive looking vase, two strange, modern art like statues, and some very, very old looking stone tablets under a glass frame. Oh, that's strange. The etchings don't look at all human.

"Kasumi! Can you tell what this text is?" I asked. She made her way over and looked down. Studying it for a moment.

"Oh! That's some form of Quarian script!"

"Khelish?"

"No, no. It's older, much older, has to be. I can't read it but it's in Quarian patterns. Probably a precursor to Khelish. And, hell, when was the last time the Quarians wrote on stone?"

"Damn, that's chunks of Rannoch then," I muttered. "We're taking those." I set down my duffel bag and opened it. "Take this?" I asked, handing Kasumi all the parts of the tux. She wasted no time putting it in her bag, and I worked on the display to open the case. I unlocked it a few moments later and Kasumi helped me move the glass to the ground, I took the tablets and put them together from their backsides without any of the script, and stored it in the bag. I'll have to take it carefully, but if I can get these for Tali and the Fleet, I'll be happy. The weight on my back wasn't exactly comfortable, but I could manage it. Only one pedestal left. It had a gun, and some sort of tech. Probably the Graybox.

"A Kassa Locust? Wait… that has to be _The_ Kassa Locust. Gun that killed two presidents," Kasumi studied it. "I'll be keeping this," she remarked, holstering it. She then sighed. "There it is. She activated her own Graybox a display appearing over her eyes as she interfaced.

"Don't bother, Ms. Goto. Its code locked," Hock's voice filled the room as holo displays by the other end of the room lit up to show a giant 3D display of his head. Straight out of fucking Bond. He grinned, self-satisfied. "The guards in security were very talkative when they weren't responding at first. I knew it must have been you. And if I was right, my vault wouldn't stop you."

"I don't like to disappoint," Kasumi responded.

"Then don't disappoint me now. I need what's in your Graybox. You know I'm willing to kill you and your friend for it." I started to stop listening. You know, that vase looks mighty expensive. I took out my pistol and shot it, the top half almost shattered and the force rolled the whole thing off its pedestal and to the floor, where it broke entirely. "No! You idiot! Do you have any idea how expensive that was?!" He growled, staring at me.

"That shut him up," Kasumi smirked.

"You'll pay for that, Gunn. If that's even your real fucking name. What are you, Alliance spec ops trying to take me down around the law?"

"Close, not quite. Council Spectre, Commander John Shepard. Helping out a friend. If I get the chance to put you down, that's a bonus," I shrugged.

"Bullshit, Shepard's dead."

"Am I? Ask your friend Sederis. I saw her at the party. Caused some trouble for her on Illium."

"Kill them," Hock growled as an alternate entrance to the vault at the far side opened up, about two squads of guards pouring through. Kasumi snagged the Graybox and secured it somewhere in her suit while I ran to cover by the pedestal of the now broken vase, and Kasumi, cloaked and vanished. I took aim with my Mattock and was able to only take down one guard before being forced to take cover. Kasumi's going to need to give me my opening. And she did. She decloaked behind them, still in cover, fortunately, and making use of the Kassa, she opened fire. Taking down five mercs before they understood what was going on. The confusion giving me an opportunity to take down three more. Just two left.

"Goddamnit!" one of the mercs cried out, a female. She tried to take cover from me and open fire on Kasumi, but she was already gone. I took out the only other merc as he tried to shoot me. The woman tried to change focus onto me, but with perfect timing, Kasumi appeared behind her, barrel of her gun behind the shields, and pushed the trigger. With the guards dead, we could afford a brief moment to plan the escape.

"Checking blueprints… Landing pad to the east. Through those doors they came through." Without any option, that's where we made our way. It was essentially a small security room, maybe a loading entrance. That perception was reinforced by how on the other side of that small security room, everything became rustic and utilitarian. Crates, supplies, loading vehicles.

And a damned YMIR mech.

"Hand me a grenade," Kasumi requested. I tossed her one off of my belt. Not primed, of course. She vanished again, and likely made her way to the mech. I just took cover because I didn't feel like getting turned into swiss cheese. And damn would I become just that if I stood right now. It was firing it's MG to keep me pinned. And then, it was all replaced with an explosion. I peeked up to see the YMIR as a smoking mess.

"Slipped the grenade under the armor," Kasumi explained. Works for me. We wouldn't be able to continue along the main loading route, it was closed off. But there was an alternate route to the side. Mech storage. Great. We hurried in, there was a rack of Ymir's ahead, all of them folded up and offline, but one on the rack was missing. The one we just blew up, no doubt. Sure there will be a few LOKI's though. Their storage reminded me of Battle Droids. To the left the storage opened up more, maybe where the loading path splits off for anything that's mech specific. Considering how there was a struck stationary, with security, it adds up. Kasumi was already gone, and I started my work shooting them. Fortunately, there were far less than in the vault. This was manageable. And with Kasumi's cloak, even more so. Good thing we cut them out of here before they could wake up more mechs. They have a lot of YMIR's. Like a private army of mechs. Jesus, he even owns an older Grizzly tank. A less mobile, heavier predecessor to the Mako. All exits from here sealed. Where next? Ah.

"Fuel cells on the wall, big fucking Mass Accelerator right there. Thinking what I'm thinking?" I asked Kasumi.

"Taking cover." I climbed into the grizzly, checking the main cannon. Ammo block is in place, just have to prime the gun. Get the power going and… ready. I squeezed the triggers, and it fired, blowing the tanks and right through the wall. We could absolutely get through that. And on the other side, some mayhem as well. Something back there had started burning. I climbed out, and the Thief and I got a move on. Good for us, there were some bodies on the other side. Crushed by rubble, blown apart from the detonation. Less security to deal with. The ones left in the corridor were dazed, probably wounded already.

"Don't fight me, Kasumi," Hock spoke on an intercom. "You know what happened to your boy toy when he fought back." I glanced at the woman. That was getting to her, but she was keeping it under control. Ahead, a supply truck moved to block us, three security ready to fire. I was able to put a bullet in one's brain as I got into cover, and shifted the weight of the duffle bag. Kasumi just repeated the same pattern, surprising both of them. One gun in each hand, one bullet to each brain. Still moving through, another loading bay. Looks like it focuses on general supplies more. Some larger crates were empty and open. We could use those as cover. They had about a squad. Hock's manpower must have been spread for the party. I wonder why Hock mostly employs humans. Not that it matters, I suppose. We put em down, just the same. We were getting close. While the main loading routes were still locked down, there were still the side routes for personnel. And the light of Boltzmann struck us, our eyes adjusting to the light of dusk. The landing pad was clear of hostiles, and with plenty of cover from supplies that had to be abandoned when the alerts must have come through. Something's not right. I hear something closing in.

Ah shit.

"Gunship! Get down!" As we dove to cover, an A-10 Mantis shot up from below the platform, it's MG firing down on us. And… the hell? It's shielded?

"We could have done this the easy way, Goto. Allow me to show you the hard way."

"Stay down, I'll handle this, Shep!" Kasumi called out. If she has a plan, all the better. Small arms fire probably won't do much to that shields. Especially if he just goes below our field of view before we break the shields, they'll just recharge. Hock's untouchable like this. Kasumi waited for the gunfire to cease, then broke off into a sprint, jumping and running and climbing over the crates to some… fuel pipes, I believe. Than sprinting across those. All the while, Hock was firing again, but he wasn't leading his shots. And he proved that those pipes weren't pumping fuel, it would have detonated. Kasumi was lined up perfectly with the gunship. He was readjusting to be able to fire on her at the new height, but she was too fast. She jumped, and landed right atop the gunship's cockpit, grabbing the top of its hatch as her Omni-tool lit up. She pulled herself up into a small jump as the cockpit windshield flew open, like she triggered a partial eject sequence. She took position again just in front of Hock, shoved the barrel of the Locust into his mouth, and pulled the trigger. She pushed her feet off the base of where the windshield would be, doing a backflip for style as she came down to land safely on the landing pad, while Hock's… corpse would be landing less than safely on the mountainside. She landed on her feet, breathing hard. And I think… she was crying. Slightly, at least, but crying, nonetheless. She nodded, it was all she could muster.

"EDI, get us out of here."


	33. Let Go

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey everyone! Before we get started, this chapter is wordy. After what Shepard saw in Hock's vault, you'll see him later having a long conversation with Tali. A good portion of that is Earth history, (I was feeling patriotic after a visit to the Hall of Presidents at Disney World a few months ago and wanted to write something like this), but what y'all are REALLY going to care about?**

 **I surprised myself by creating some good chunks of Quarian history. From scratch. Original. There was nothing in the Codex to help with this, and while I may be adopting some words (like det'kazaut) from Calinstel, I'm not adopting his Quarian history, their biology, and most certainly not their psychology. And there are aspects of this history that I want to make use of later as well. So, I'm going to have a little more to say at the end of the chapter, but I hope you all enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

This time, I let EDI handle the flight back. Kasumi was in the crew bay alone linking up to Keiji's Graybox while I made a call to Anderson, marking it 'Urgent' to try and hasten an answer. Still, he is a councilor. However, I did get an almost instant notification that he should be able to call for a break in the current meeting in around fifteen minutes. So, I waited. Considering she's going through her late lover's Graybox, I imagine the memories and information she'd be starting with would be personal. This dangerous information he had can wait. Kasumi can have her privacy. Slightly longer than fifteen minutes later, a voice responded on the Comm. It was David, but this is business, so, Anderson.

"Shepard? What's going on?" he asked. Concerned, but not alarmed. If it was marked as an emergency, he'd have just left the meeting he was in right away. He still had some worry gnawing at the back of his head.

"I just got done having a less-than approved private tour of the freshly deceased Donovan Hock's vault on Bekenstein. Long story short, didn't all go to plan but we're fine. Point is, there's a lot of shit in that vault he has that he absolutely should not. I need you to contact Bekenstein's garrison and have a team go in before the vultures get at it, of which there are plenty."

"Consider it done, but I'm going to need at least your own map of his mansion for how you got in and out, and some of the particulars for them to look out for."

"Short of everything in there? The only pieces I could directly identify were Human, though my squad mate was able to identify some Turian art and… it was at least a replica of a historically significant Turian ship. The Human pieces include an Ancient Egyptian stone carving of a Pharaoh, Michelangelo's David, and the head of Lady fucking Liberty."

"And I was about to cut you off in surprise at 'David'. Jesus. I'll make sure they're securing everything within the hour. Beyond that, want any mention in the press?"

"Despite what the Council wants?" I responded, a little surprised he'd just go around them.

"These _are_ important parts of Human history, Shepard." I couldn't help but smile slightly.

"I can't say I wouldn't mind if it gets out that my team and I found the pieces. I do have two additional requests, however. They weren't our objective, but we did take two ancient Quarian stone tablets that I wanted to give directly to Tali myself, so that she could return them to the Fleet, and I want the three ancient Krogan statues that were there brought to the Normandy so that I can bring them to Wrex when I go see him again."

"That last part will be more difficult. Sparatus, Valern, and, probably Tevos will argue for those to be placed in a Museum somewhere on the Citadel, suspecting they'll just become rubble otherwise. If you can get Wrex to formally request their return, as well as have a group of curators prepared to keep them intact, Tevos at least might lean to our side here. Sparatus certainly won't, despite not giving much of a damn about art, and Valern might just side with us if Tevos does simply to end the matter quickly," Anderson explained.

"Then I'll make my visit to him sooner rather than later."

"Good. I'll make the call, and you expect to hear back with an offer of a White House visit," Anderson chuckled. There's the smile again.

"Thank you, Sir."

"Thank you, Shepard." The call ended. Alright, the Spectre induction was a pretty… surreal experience. But something about recognition and honors received from the nation I identify to? It's like… it's more real? Definitely more personal. And yet, compared to my Spectre induction, it's not even significant.

"Commander," EDI spoke through the ship, surprising me and getting me out of my own thoughts. "Kasumi appears to have ceased her interface with her partner's Graybox and is under duress. From my understanding of Organic behavior, she would benefit from your presence." Well, she was already shaky after she killed Hock, I'm not surprised she's not doing better. I stood from my seat and opened the door to the crew cabin. I'd knock, but it wouldn't be well heard.

"Kasumi?" I began, stepping in. She was sitting with her back to the wall along the seats to where she could stretch her legs out across them if she wanted but instead had her legs curled up against her, her face buried into her own thighs, muffling the sounds of sobbing. I debated whether or not to say anything else, but there wasn't much anyone could really say when I lost my father. What helped more, were the shoulders to cry on, and more often than not, they were silent. I took a seat at her feet and gently put my hand on her knee just to let her know I was there. Anything else is at her request and initiative. She let out a shaky, half breath, half sob, and grabbed hold of my hand with one of her own, and just squeezed it. I squeezed her knee in response, then released the grip but kept my hand in place.

We spent the rest of the journey silent, and exactly like that. The only change came when the shuttle touched down in the Normandy hangar and took a deep breath.

"Thanks, Shep."

"Anytime, Kasumi. I know what it is to grieve." She took another deep breath.

"Right. Thanks again, Shep. I'm… I'm just going to stay in here a while."

"Absolutely. We can talk whenever you're ready." Kasumi just nodded as I stood and grabbed the duffel bag with the tablets and left the shuttle, only checking them after the door had closed. It was a good thing, I noticed, that I had their plain, uncarved sides against one another. They were more scratched and chipped than I remember. And… I at least don't think the scripted sides had gotten damaged at all. I put them back in the duffel bag and made my way to the elevator, taking it up to my quarters first. Upon arrival, I set the tablets, scripted side up, carefully on the coffee table down by the couch and bed. I'd figured I should leave those there, and go see Tali. Chakwas should be willing to let her wander around now. I vid-called her.

"Jo-Shepard," she cut herself off then sniffled, still feeling some of the sickness. And changing to my last name tells me she's not alone. "I just heard you came back. How'd the mission go?" she asked.

"It was a success, if not all to plan. It went loud, and Kasumi put down Hock during the escape. She's… in a place I'm familiar with, right now. But," I changed my tone to lighten the mood. "I got something to show you. Come on up to my quarters." Tali tilted her head to the side, curious.

"Sure, on my way." The comm ended, and I took a seat, just watching the fish in the tank. About five minutes later, the door to my quarters opened, and Tali stepped inside.

"Over here," I gestured raising my hand over my head and waving. She noticed easily enough and joined me down on the lower segment. "Found these in Hock's vault. Nabbed them just for you," I gestured at the tablets.

"What… What are they?" Tali studied them closely, curiously.

"I… I put it the wrong way around, didn't I?"

"What do you mean?"

"Here, look at it from my angle." She did as suggested and walked around to the other side of the couch, and took a look again.

"...Keelah, is that...? It has to be," her voice filled with awe. "I can't read it, at all, but I recognize the script from some of my history classes. Shalakoni."

"Is that the name of the language or a translator glitch? Shalaconey?"

"The name. Shalakoni," she repeated. "It's one of our first, if not the first, written Quarian script."

"Ah, so like the Sumerian Cuneiform," Tali looked back at me with slight confusion.

"Sumerians were the first Human civilization, and Cuneiform is what they wrote into clay tablets."

"Then yes, this would be very similar. And- Keelah, I just began to realize," Tali got quiet, and, with a shaky hand, reached out to run her gloved hand over the stone. "That's Rannoch," Smiling wide, I put an arm around her. "There is _nothing_ like this back on the Fleet, and that… det'kazaut had it locked away in his vault like… some kind of trophy? How many other pieces of our history, of our home, are in the hands of people like him?" she asked sadly. She turned back to me. "Thank you, John, for returning this to us." She then wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug.

I gently ran my hands up and down her back, and it was almost… painful, knowing I couldn't just kiss her now. This would absolutely be a great time for our first one, after all. But, her pace, with her safety. She nestled her head deeper into the nook of my shoulder and neck, then pulled away. We shared a look, and with that look alone, I was convinced her mind was running on a similar track. And that made not trying to take her mask off that much more difficult.

"S-so, what else was in the vault?" she asked, changing focus as we sat back down."

"There were some Turian pieces that I know nothing about, some ancient Krogan statues depicting warriors with massive cleavers, axes, hammers, so, really damn old. But what I could really talk about? Three particular pieces of Human history. The first, a large rock carving straight out of a country on Earth, Egypt, depicting a Pharaoh, which were essentially kings. Here," I offered, opening my Omni-tool and running a quick image search of ancient Egypt. I pointed out the Pyramids, the Sphinx, and other examples of Pharaoh carvings. "That's all around three to four thousand years ago bare minimum. Were the Quarians spacefaring yet?"

"No, not yet. We joined the Galactic Community shortly after the Krogan rebellions. We advanced quickly, but we didn't expand nearly as much as you humans have," Tali explained.

"Got it. So, the next piece would be the statue of David, a figure from one of Humanity's religions. Sculpted by a famous artist from the nation of Italy during a period we call the Renaissance, which translates to English as a Rebirth." I ran an image search of the statue, getting it's more flattering and intact version in the past. "Says here it was finished in 1504, and it went missing after the European Civil war tore through Florence, the city the statue called home in a Museum.

"And just what was this, Rebirth?" Tali asked.

"History lesson? Alright, but I get to try and learn some of Quarian history in exchange, alright?"

"Deal."

"Good. So, the Renaissance was pretty much all centered within the nation of Italy, here," I showed her on a map on my Omni-tool. "For the past thousand or so years, Europe, the Continent it's directly attached too," I lined it out with a finger, "were in the dark ages. Everything in Europe stagnated in favor of a strict and devout following of the Christian religion. If the solution wasn't physically obvious, or the problem couldn't be solved through prayer, it couldn't be solved at all. The Renaissance began the end of the Dark age with a renewed interest, particularly in the Roman Empire from before the start of the dark ages as well as some amount of interest in the Ancient Greeks."

"But, wait," Tali stopped me and took the map I was using to show her, and pointed at Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Oceania. "What about all of these places? Were they just, untouched by Humans?"

"Not at all. The Americas I'll touch on with the last piece in Hock's vault I want to tell you about. Africa? Humanity's birthplace, where we evolved, but it's also one of the most hostile places on Earth to us. Heh, pretty sure Australia beats it though," I chuckled. "Anyways, it had plenty of civilization all around, but, generally, because of how the environment made it harder to develop some technologies, they were less advanced than the Europeans. They never developed Gunpowder on their own, and Europe used the entire Continent to take untold amounts of slaves. They still had their own civilizations, but at worst, they were completely subjugated, and at best, the Europeans just hadn't gotten around to them yet. Asia? Several different civilizations. Here," I gestured to the Middle East. "Were the Ottomans. They didn't stagnate, following a different faith than Europe, and I believe were leading the world in technological advancement. Not utilizing electricity, however. The Russians up here, most were either struggling to survive in Siberia, trying not to freeze their assess off or become lunch for absolutely massive bears in the area, a kind of predator, or they were struggling to survive under the hand of Peter and the Tsars who followed him. Kings," I explained. "The Mongols, here, were passing their prime which was during the 1200s and the Chinese had their empire which was almost constantly shattering and reforming, then shattering again. Despite that, they still rivaled the Ottomans for tech."

"Oceania, the islands all around the Pacific Ocean, here? I have less of an accurate idea about. The northern Islands were mostly if not completely of the race we call Asian, though, like all of our races, it has different subsets. The Chinese, the Koreans, the Japanese, the Taiwanese, etc."

"Wait, I'm sorry, I need you to clarify. Different Human races?"

"It's like different breeds of Human. Like… hm, sorry, but I don't know any Quarian animals. Here," I pulled up pictures of dogs. There's a Golden Retriever, and there's a Doberman, that'll do. "These are dogs. On the left, with the light coat is a Golden Retriever, and on the right, is a Doberman. They're different breeds, and you can see some obvious differences, but they're both still dogs. It's like that, but with people. The Hispanics and Latinos, the Asians, the Africans, Gaelic's, Scandinavians, so on so forth. Did Quarians not do similar with their own?"

"In a sense, but your terminology made the separation sound more significant. Those who can trace their regional heritage to the equatorial areas of Rannoch have darker pigmentations than those further north or south of the equator, but thanks to the suits we're losing that pigmentation anyway. We would have described them just like we do with ship names now, though vas was not used at the time unless referencing their profession, generally in a guild or corporation. For example, the Zorah family called the southwest region of the main continent, Tolon, home. That region was known as Tolonsila. If I were alive at that time, my name would have been Tali'Zorah nar Tolonsila."

"I getcha. Where I'd just be called American, your people would have said that I'm _of_ America."

"Precisely. It both refers to one as a person first, and their home, while significant, as less so than your identity."

"Damn it is funny the differences that seem to make," I chuckled. "Go on?" Tali nodded in response. "Right, so, more southbound? Australia here had the Aboriginals, which migrated from Africa and became their own people, particularly across all these smaller islands and New Zealand, the Samoans. More tribal, less advanced. Australia, when it was colonized by the British, all the way back on this small island by Europe actually dumped all their prisoners here. Explains why so many Australians are bat-shit crazy," I chuckled. "And I really mean that in the best of ways. And it certainly doesn't help their disposition that nearly every damn thing there is lethal and wants to kill you."

"Then why live there at all?" Tali asked, confused.

"Isn't it obvious? Humans are real stubborn sons of bitches," I laughed.

"True," Tali smirked under her mask. "The last thing that caught your attention?"

"Hm, this is one that kinda pisses me off. The same way learning he had those tablets of yours did to you. He had the head of the Statue of Liberty from the United States of America. The Country my parents were born and raised in, I was technically born in but still grew up Alliance. It's a damn proud heritage to be a part of though," I reinforced.

"Ok, first, the Statue, how it ended up in Hock's vault, and then why you have this pride in it."

"Gladly," I chuckled. The Statue was a gift from the Nation of France in Europe for the U.S. winning its Independence from Britain. For centuries, it stood on this small Island just outside of New York City, which is where most immigrants came to the country from at the time." I showed Tali a picture of the Statue, and then searched the poem engraved on its plaque, as I just didn't remember it by heart. Pieces, but not all. I read it off for her.

" _Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,_

 _With conquering limbs astride from land to land;_

 _Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand_

 _A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame_

 _Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name_

 _Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand_

 _Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command_

 _The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame._

" _Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she_

 _With silent lips. 'Give me your tired, your poor,_

 _Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,_

 _The wretched refuse of your teeming shore._

 _Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,_

 _I lift my lamp beside the golden door!'"_

"It sounds nice, but, I'm afraid I don't understand much… any of it," Tali explained a bit embarrassed.

"Don't worry about it. So, the Americas were the new world. There were already natives here when the Europeans first learned it existed, but they hadn't advanced much and were easy pickings. In the late 1400s and early 1500s. Though the whole series of events between that and the birth of America went on all the way to around the mid-1700s.

Technically, a Scandinavian explorer was the first European in 'the new world' but I don't know the date. These natives were human, of course, but their ancestors came over when there was a land bridge connecting the northern end of America to the Northern end of Asia. South and Central America were more or less all dominated by the Spaniards and the Portuguese, and building their new cities on slave labor and over the bones of the native empires. Native people did survive, both either remotely or as slave labor down here.

North America was the British and the French, and neither were as aggressive as the Spaniards. Certainly not the friends of the Natives, but not outright killing or enslaving every last one. People flocked to the new world, generally for a new start, opportunity. To find themselves a home on the frontier or the new cities in no short demand for work. At the time, however, the American colonies, the thirteen under British Control, were not well represented in the Parliamentary Monarchy. Unrest grew, and the thirteen colonies declared independence and managed to defeat the world's largest empire at the time and win their independence.

The founding fathers built their new government off of the work of ancient Greek philosophers, particularly, the focus on Democracy and Republics. Egalitarianism. The first system they tried was really weak and didn't work, but they managed to stick together to make a new system that stands to this day. The Legislative Branch, the Judiciary, and the Executive keeping one another in check. Legislators elected by the people, and the President elected as a kind of mix. A representative or Senator has to vote for which president the people they directly represent voted for. I'm going to want to touch on that in a moment as goddamn do I feel patriotic," I laughed. "So, think about the poem again in that context. Tali was silent a moment.

"Yes, it makes much more sense now. This statue represented opportunity and freedom. It cared little for the aristocrats of the 'old world' but welcomed and called for the hopeless."

"Essentially. Though it was absolutely romanticized. In reality, I'll admit the opportunity for the newcomers was not all that glamorous until the 2000s. So, back to my patriotic rambling. The first President was a man named George Washington. He was actually the leader of America's armies during the Revolution but didn't make any of his own moves to power, but the national congress still looked to him for advice. During the war, during a long cold winter, he refused extra accommodations compared to his troops as one example. Anyways, in a landslide, he was voted into power for a total of eight years. Two terms of Presidency. He could have run again, but he refused. He didn't want the Presidency, but his people essentially demanded him. After eight years, he knew the torch had to be passed on to set an example for all future presidents. Out of principal, rather than law, very, very few Presidents ran for a third term. Though it was later made a law that two terms were the limit."

"He sounds like an Honorable man."

"I genuinely believe he was. He just wanted to go home to his wife and live an easy, honest life. Fast forward about a century and some of the uglier past rears its head. During the whole time, America, the southern states to be specific, and America had been expanding, still used slave labor. The Northern states had wanted an end to it for a long time, but they knew they couldn't push for it during the Country's birth because they needed unity with the southern states. So, they left a foundation for it to be used in the Constitution. 'All men are created equal.'"

"What about the women?" Tali asked, confused.

"That's just a translation thing. We call ourselves Humanity, right? Turn off your translator for this next word." I gave her a moment. "Man," and a moment for her to turn it back on. "Is both used as a general term for Humanity, and a single male. Our term for a female is, turn it off again," I began. "Woman." Another moment. "You see? It's just some linguistics. Some people get really hung up over it, but they just take things too literally. But, to be fair, up until the early 1900s, women were still generally treated as second class, but by the 2000s, gender equality was the norm in the western countries. Other, less advanced, authoritarian, oppressive societies like Saudi Arabia and China lagged behind in that regard. Significantly."

"Thank you, I see now."

"Good. Anyways, Abraham Lincoln was the President who took that foundation and built precisely what the founding fathers hoped for. He was elected in 1861, and it was well known he wanted to abolish slavery on the national level. The southern states rebelled, and there was a civil war that lasted for just under the duration of Lincoln's four-year term. But Lincoln and the North won, preserving the union. And Lincoln still supported honoring the southern troops, welcoming them back without penalty, and he mourned every death in the war. One of his most famous speeches was at the aftermath of the bloodiest battle, while the war was still going on. He believed that no amount of consecration or hallowing could further consecrate or hallow that battlefield than the blood of all those who died there. That the world wouldn't remember the words said that day, but would never forget the battle. That a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, should not meet its end."

"Why did he not get elected again?"

"He was assassinated shortly after the war. Shot right in the back of the head while viewing a theater performance with his wife. It made his plans of an agreeable reconstruction fall apart. Wasn't the first time, wasn't the last," I shrugged. Next president that I respect the hell out of is Teddy Roosevelt. He was a badass, and another great example of someone just like the common people leading them. He was passionate about the environment and passionate about fairness and equality to the people. And he had no patience for the corporations running rampant at the time. He began establishing national parks when he took office from 1901 to 1909. He began bringing the banks to heel, regulating railroads, which were, at the time, the main method of land transportation. As well as regulating food and drugs to be safe and consumer friendly. Someone tried to assassinate him, the bullet was stopped by the massive folded up speech in his pocket just before giving his speech, and the bastard went on to give his speech. When he died, a friend essentially said that of course, he died in his sleep, because if death tried to take him when he was awake, there would have been a fight."

"That sounds like you," Tali joked.

"And that sounds like a very good compliment," I responded. "Washington, Lincoln, and Teddy are longtime role models of mine. Now, let's see, World War 1 came and went, America was only involved in the later portion, then there was the great depression where the economy tanked. FDR did what he could to try and help the poor out, and there's still debate whether or not it really worked. World War 2 gave us a war economy as Nazi Germany was on a genocidal rampage and on the brink of European victory before their allies in Japan attacked our ships, and we joined the war. Fighting on the European and Pacific front. What really screwed Germany was that they tried to invade Russia and by the time they got anywhere near the capital it was winter. No one ever succeeded in that. That pissed Russia off, and thus started the end of the Nazis. For Japan? Their culture hated surrender. But developing nuclear weapons and dropping them on two cities gives a bit of a new perspective. We severely underestimated the damage and suffering the nukes would cause. Fast forward to the 1960s, and you got John F Kennedy. Young President, charismatic, people person. Did work with the Civil rights movement, before he was assassinated, that is, to give equal rights to African Americans, the once slaves, and he also started the Space Race between America and the Russians but never lived to see America bring the first men onto our moon."

"2001, you have President George W. Bush. Debatable in plenty of things, but there's one thing that has to be respected about him. In 2001, America suffered the worst Terrorist attack in its history to that point. Thousands were dead. Terrorists hijacked several airplanes and two of them struck the Twin Towers of New York on an average morning. One struck the Pentagon in our capitol, which is like a military HQ, and a third crashed in a field because the passengers took back control, but weren't able to safely land it. We don't know for sure where it was going. Bush immediately joined the nation in grieving and sent troops to take out the bastards responsible. Personally overseeing as much as he could of the honoring of the troops. Every soldier was a national hero to him. And that was an earnest belief of his. And his successor was actually the first African American President as well. Unfortunately, the presidents of the start of the 2000s, Bush included, for the first three decades were just controversial as all hell. America has absolutely had its lows, and it's had highs. But it's always had those core values that define it and its people, that its people embrace and love. The people have a voice, and they have the power to change their government for the better. Its successful revolution inspired nations around the world to revolt and embrace egalitarianism. Equality, liberty, and individualism. Fuck yeah. If you only live for the sake of others, you're not living at all."

"But what about helping others?"

"By all means, help them! Be a good Samaritan, work together and cooperate with other people. But don't just be a drone who does nothing for themselves, who doesn't let themselves have any self-motivation, who can't attribute any of their own accomplishments to themselves." I gave a sideways glance to Tali. That was making her think. "What I said there was technically only half of my personal philosophy. If you only live for the sake of others, you have nothing, but if you only live for yourself, you have no one. Both will leave you empty and unfulfilled. Only by finding a balance between the two will anyone find their happiness. Not only will one have things they can call their own, and take pride in their accomplishments, but they will have true friends and family to share it with."

"...Are you sure you're just a soldier, John Shepard?" Tali asked after a moment, amused.

"I am. I just like to think I've gotten at least a little bit of wisdom from my years in the service," I chuckled. "What about your history?"

"Oh? Oh, right. Well, what surprises me the most about your history, is how nationalistic it is. There's a strong identity to individual nations. Quarians are very Communal. Our names may always reference our home ship, but all of us are always the Migrant Fleet first. In our past, it was always Rannoch first. In our early history, there was more separation between nations, some lasted longer, more stubborn than others, but before we could even achieve air flight, most Quarians all lived under a single banner. An Egalitarian nation where the people appointed members of a Conclave, not unlike the one we have now. They all worked together to reach outcomes best for all parties. They never appointed a leader, but with Galactic relations, they would appoint a spokesperson. We have far fewer wars to talk about than your people, and we are far too eager to discuss our issues en masse to have such large and long periods of controversy. While I don't think our earlier history is unremarkable, it is… calmer, I think is a good word."

"Yeah, I can see that," I nodded. "Who made your Conclave?"

"Despite its structure, the movement to form it was actually initiated when a Politician, Nelo'Zorah nar Tolonsila."

"One of your ancestors?" Tali meekly glanced down with some embarrassment.

"Y-Yes. Clan Zorah has always been influential. In no small part due to her. Anyways, Tolonsila was already close diplomatically to its neighbors, but still independent. She proposed to the Tolonsilan council, and convinced them, to suggest the formation of a higher conclave to unite with their neighbors more formally and to extend the same offers to further neighbors that Tolonsila communicated with less frequently, though mostly because there was little need because of distance. Because it was she who proposed it, she acted as an envoy to bring the proposal forth to Tolondelma and Telonrallir, the neighbors, first, and if they accepted to begin the transition, to bring it forth out further. It took time, and Nelo had to theorize several different additions to the Codes of Conclave first, but she convinced them. After all of Tolon was united, and other portions of the Codes of Conclave were finalized by the Conclave itself, Nelo volunteered to spread the message further. Some accepted some wanted to wait and see, and a select few flat out refused. As the Conclave grew and managed to hold together, more of those who wanted to wait, gave it a chance. Approximately two centuries later, One of the three who refused attempted to incite war, but the Conclave was not weak. The military forces of those who joined the Conclave were not diminished by the lack of adversaries but still combined as those three remaining nations were already aggressive. Narshila, Bek, and Quarlara. After the attack by Bek, the Conclave's armies moved in swiftly and pushed them back. And with the technology of flight recently achieved, they were quickly chased back and surrounded in their capitol, and the following night, Bek's Knoss, their king, threw himself from his palace, and his son accepted the terms of surrender and joined Bek into the conclave. In the following decades, Narshila and Quarlara, under financial strain and pressure from their own citizens joined as well."

"Impressive. Absolutely impressive. Far more bloodless than Human history, that's for sure."

"There were times with more bloodshed, don't mistake that, but most were before gunpowder, with keeps built of stone, and some of our people worshipped deities rather than our ancestors."

"So, like our medieval period. Still, it's commendable."

"I'm glad you think well of our history."

"So, what happened after all your nations joined into the Conclave?"

"At first, a focus on integration. Many debates were sponsored in Bek, Narshila, and Quarlara as their populations were still used to more authoritarian methods. After that, stabilization of the economy and helping it prosper, and after that, a focus on research and technology. Enhancing state-sponsored educations, increasing opportunity, and such things. The conclave even encouraged a friendly competition between its regions to reach space. While all other research must be shared, the Conclave allowed advancements in rocketry to temporarily be kept within the regions, so long as whoever reached our moon first, would share the knowledge soon after."

"Would they win anything?"

"Bragging rights and the team of scientists responsible would also win medals, naturally, a monetary reward, and whatever wagers they had made with partners elsewhere. What they also won, but certainly never expected to win, was to have their team of Astronauts credited with the discovery of Prothean ruins on our moon."

"And that drastically accelerated the space race so you could gain their technology, and then find out you had a Mass Relay in your home system."

"Essentially, yes."

"Well, now I certainly think I understand Quarians better," I remarked.

"And I, Humans." Any response I could have given, however, was cut off as my Omni-tool pinged. A message from Kasumi, which, that revelation immediately washed away any hint of annoyance.

 _Can I come up? I'm ready to talk. To both of you._

I'm not surprised she knows Tali's here. I showed her the message, but she remembered what I said earlier about Kasumi not doing all too well. She nodded, and I responded, letting her know to come right on up. Shortly, the door opened, and Kasumi entered, hood still up, and carrying Keiji's Graybox. I gestured for her to take a seat on the sofa, and she took a deep breath and started with a shaky voice.

"Keiji, he… left a message. Asking me to do something, but… I don't know if I can."

"What did he ask?" Tali asked quietly. Kasumi took another deep breath.

"Not yet. I won't tell you, and I won't ask for your advice until you understand just what I stand to lose. Is there a view screen?"

"EDI?" I asked. The glass on our side of the model mounts at my desk blackened as the text 'awaiting input' appeared, and a slot on its side opened. Either for a wired connection or to show that it was waiting to receive a wireless connection. Kasumi linked it to the Graybox, and the memories began. All through the eyes of a dead man I never knew. It was a dark, rainy night in a city, judging by the sounds, the cars, and the lights, but even then, it was gritty, hinting at it being a poorer district. Tokyo, I'd assume. Keiji turned into an alleyway and sitting cross-legged, almost cat-like, was a human figure in a black hoody brought low, almost too big for the body wearing it, and what I would assume to be black leggings.

"I want in," the figure spoke with the voice of a young woman. Younger teens, I'd expect. Kasumi, obviously, and I'm sure she spoke Japanese in the actual memory, but my translator was taking care of it for me. And judging by the gasp and rapid glance around by Keiji, she most certainly took him by surprise.

Other memories passed by, running and jumping over the rooftops, Kasumi just laughing. Often proclaiming how "this was the life" or how she "never felt so free." Another memory that began in what I'd bet to be a bank vault with a certainly freshly cut hole in its ceiling and several freshly filled bags of cash with devices, no doubt equipped with mass effect fields to make the bags lighter, slung over the shoulders of Kasumi, and Keiji checked his own, showing it to us. Kasumi was instead wearing a mask under her hoodie this time, but she lifted it up just enough to show a smirk as she climbed back into the hole, helping Keiji up. It flashed forward to the pair once again running and jumping over the rooftops with the faint sound of sirens.

And she would still have been a teen around this time.

They must have reached the building they were heading for, as they veered off towards the roof entrance of one. Another small fast forward, and they were celebrating with another pair of faces I didn't recognize, both men, counting the money, and enjoying what is absolutely alcohol.

There were a few other relatively similar events shown on the screen, though the other faces, aside from Kasumi's of course, always changed. All until one night, Kasumi and Keiji were sitting beside one another on the edge of one of Tokyo's skyscrapers, looking out across the city.

"It never gets old," Kasumi murmured, her voice now sounding older, closer to her current voice, but not there yet.

"Not with you around," Keiji responded.

"Always the flirt," Kasumi lightly slapped him on the shoulder, smiling.

"There's the reason for that," Keiji added, some nerves creeping. Slowly, Keiji brought his hand back to Kasumi's cheek, rubbed it with his thumb, and pulled down her hood. She had a soft face, and larger, brown eyes, with short, unkempt black hair. They kissed, and the memory once again shifted. This time, it was day, and the pair were lounging, in civilian clothes and unguarded faces in one of Tokyo's parks, having a picnic together of all things. Just enjoying one another's company, and making casual remarks about how they'd rob passersby. They soon moved to kiss again, and the memory shifted.

When the visuals returned, the two were locked in a rather… a passionate kiss and a door behind Kasumi opened. Her eyes were closed, but it seems Keiji's were open to guide them. There was a bed, and as Kasumi's thighs made contact with the bed, her eyes flared open, she broke the kiss and spun around to change their positions and shoved Keiji down onto the bed. She lifted her shirt off, turned around to pull off her pants, but was too eager to take the slow tease. I could tell Tali was a bit uncomfortable watching this now, and, I'll be honest, so was I, but we said nothing. Kasumi turned back around, her bra now undone, but it wasn't lost on me that the focus of the memory was all on her face. Kasumi's face was the only visual aspect that was burned into his memory. Even as she crawled onto the bed and over him, and when they locked lips again, the memory passed.

Different series of heists followed in the memory, and now, the scenery was changing. The Thessian skyline, the Illium skyline, Omega, Elysium, Terra Nova, and, of course, the Citadel. And the key theme in all the memories was the happiness, and the stolen moments, even in a chase, for the two to enjoy a view together, and steal however slight of a moment for one another. The memories ceased.

"I… I know a lot of that was... Personal, but… like I said. I needed to know that you understood. I'm sorry," Kasumi murmured. She keyed another sequence on the Graybox, and it showed a holographic, full body image of Keiji. Asian, of course, and of a small build. Brown eyes, short, black hair not well kept, but his face was cleanly shaven, with a purple line like Kasumi's on his chin. He was dressed in a black get up not dissimilar to Thane's, but more in style with Kasumi's. It had a hood, but it was down at his neck.

"Kasumi," he began, his voice soft, and even sad. "If you're seeing this, it's because I'm dead. And… I'm sorry. However it happened, I'm sorry." He took a deep breath. "The information I found is all here," he gestured to the side and an image of… a fucking Reaper?!

"Keelah," Tali gasped.

"I think it's the Leviathan of Dis. I don't know for sure yet, but I think the Alliance tried to raid information on it from the Batarians, but it went bad. I don't know yet," Kasumi explained quickly, then gestured back to the screen. Ok, talk about that later.

"It's big, Kasumi. If the Council ever got wind of this… the Alliance could be implicated." So that's where the assumption of a raid comes from. "Kasumi, I encrypted the information to keep it safe. And I uploaded the encryption key to your Graybox, so no one could get the whole package. But if I'm dead… and anyone knows about this? Then I've made you a target, my love. I'm sorry, so sorry," he spoke quietly and took another deep breath. "I know you, Kasumi. You'll want to keep these memories forever. But you already have them. You don't need some-neural implant to know I'll always be with you. Please, Kasumi. Destroy these files. There's nothing more I can do to protect you. Goodbye, Kasumi. I love you." Despite having already watched it, Kasumi began to silently cry. Tali immediately sat up and rushed to hug her friend.

Fucking hell, this is what I did to Tali two years ago. Never again. Never. Fucking. Again.

I waited. Tali was the first to speak once Kasumi calmed down.

"Is there a way to save the memories?"

"No," Kasumi answered. "They're laced into the information. Deleting the code will delete every memory it's connected to." I was silent for another moment.

"He was right, though. You already had the memories before we got the Graybox."

"It's not the same," she muttered, almost silently.

"But it is. When I lost my father, I had nothing but memories of him. Constantly. I still have them, the good and the bad. Letting go doesn't mean you lose what you had, it doesn't mean you'll forget. It means that you accept that there's nothing you can do, or could have done, and you come to terms with it. You won't stop mourning him, but you'll be able to move on with your life. You know it is what he'd want."

"John is… right, Kasumi. If you don't… let go," it was hard for Tali to talk about this. And that killed me inside. "It will hurt every moment of every day. You'll be an empty shell, and you'll start to push away anyone else that's close. And that would-" Tali steadied herself and her emotions. "That would break his heart to see." Kasumi took a shaky breath.

"I-I know. And you're right. But… I can't. It feels… It feels like I'd be killing him. It's all that's left."

"Do you want me to do it?" I offered. Kasumi was silent a moment before she nodded. I opened my omni-tool to interface with the Graybox. With a wave of her own, Kasumi granted me access. The prompt showed up: Delete files? Below, two boxes. Yes, and no. I pressed down on yes, and Kasumi choked on more tears. A progress bar showed up and quickly filled to 100%.

"I love you, Kasumi." played over my Omni-tool as a file was added. A simple audio file.

Kasumi let the floodgates open.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: So, as you may expect, all of Earth's history that I mentioned I of course googled to ensure they were factual, and everything I wrote regarding the Quarian's past, including when they joined the Galactic Community (I looked it wasn't in the codex or wiki) were all original here. So don't pull a me and confuse something in a fic for canon. Beyond that, I hope you liked the twist I gave to the Graybox, with early memories of the pair running around Tokyo, to their later escapades, culminating all in the end. I'm happy with it, I hope all of you are! See you in the next one!**


	34. Gut Feeling

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys! Just a quick thing to tell y'all about. In this chapter you'll see a pair of C-Sec officers, a Turian woman and a Human male. This is a cameo of a story from a friend of mine, that, despite its name, is actually extremely wholesome and very well made. You can't find it on however, and links here just don't work. So, go to Archive of Our Own, and look for "C-Sex." He's got 2 stories about them. One early in their career, and one just after the citadel coup. So, go say hi to Bryoche!**

 **Garrus Vakarian**

None of my old contacts on Omega have been able to pick up the trail, and I wasn't exactly expecting them to be able to. Illium could have had a lead, but the only contact I have there is Liara, and I've checked with her already.

The closest thing to a Turian matching his description was a female with the same colony markings. He may have gone barefaced, but those just attract more attention. It's not impossible, but it could be a hard trail to pick up. And considering that a return to any Turian world would need heavy documentation, he's spent so much of his life in Terminus. Assuming that's even true. But at the Citadel, I can probably find something. Since his accounts were all emptied on Omega, he has the credits to bribe an official to skimp on some of the documentation. But he'd still show up on the security cams in immigration. If I can confirm he's on the station, I can use my old network of contacts to narrow it down to the bastard himself. And that's why I was here in the C-Sec headquarters. A few familiar faces, but plenty of new ones, and more humans than back when I served.

Who I needed to see was in the surveillance division. The guy I'd go to back in the day to start a good deal of my cases by seeing if he could pick up any and all surveillance related to the crime or help search for the suspect. And if we ever encountered red-tape, he'd go home sick for the day, and from the privacy of his home terminal, and find the private security camera footage we couldn't get access to. I could never put it into a report, but it gets me an ID and generally something I can look into. He'll help me out.

Normally I wouldn't have bothered checking the directory to find him, I know C-Sec like the point of my talon, after all. But it has been two years. Maybe he got a promotion, maybe he got a new office. As it turned out, I was just going the same way I had been in the past, but his title was different now. No longer another Surveillance officer, but now, an Overwatch Lieutenant. He always thought the title was weird, but it's standard in the Hierarchy.

Ah. there it is. Nelson Waring.

I walked up to his door and gave it a knock.

"Come in," he responded the slight hint of aging in his voice was a bit more prominent. He's in his fifties, now. Still young these days, but there's still a sign, if small, of getting old. I opened the door to see the old, dark-skinned man sitting at his desk, working on… some report, or other.

He looked up and gave a double take before grinning.

"Garrus! Long time no see!" He gestured at the chair on the other side of his desk and we shook hands as I sat. "It's good to see you, but I know that look. You're here with a purpose. I'd ask what you've been up to, but this is probably related. What can big brother do for you?" He and a few of the other Human officers were fond of calling him that. I never understood why they just told me it was just something from older Human media.

"Long story, but, yes. It is," I answered. He always was good at reading people. One of the reason's he works Surveillance. "I'm looking for someone. They betrayed me. Nearly got me killed, and got my entire team killed." The cheerfulness on Nelson's face faded to seriousness.

"Where from? And what was the team?"

"Omega. We were vigilantes, of a kind. Trying to take down the gangs and help out the innocents."

"I'll do everything I can, but since this isn't an official expedition, I am going to be limited."

"That's not the first time," I remarked. He allowed a smirk.

"True. Give me an image, a name. Anything that I can run through the VI's search." My omni-tool lit up with a folder of images of Sidonis, of his head, his body, as well as video clips from ops with audio from him so that his voice can be narrowed down if possible. "Well, there's no shortage here. But I guess working with someone for two years can give you a lot to work with here. I'll run this through immigration security right away, searching within…?"

"The month and a half."

"Right, I'll just do two months. I'll filter out the Turian space immigration, but I'll keep everything else open. No clue where he decided to arrive at the station from." I nodded in response and just waited. Even with all the high tech VI's working the station, they had a lot to sift through, and it took ten minutes for the search to finish.

"Here we are. Got a facial recognition narrowed down to just one individual, it's not confused between any others. Going by the name of Vipius Sullin. Came in on a shuttle from Elysium, and has a curiously and absolutely coincidentally vague documentation. I'll be sure to file an investigation request on the officer who oversaw him for bribery," Nelson remarked on the side. "He came in through Zakera ward. I'd send in the order to some of the surveillance officers to spread the net, but I'd need this to be an official investigation. So, what I'm going to do instead, is this. I know an officer in Zakera, she and her partner investigate narcotics and smuggling. Your old friend here would be looking for someone right up their alley to get him under the radar, I'm sure. I think they're on break, but I'll give 'em a call right now." Nelson typed at his terminal, I stood and walked behind him to watch. In a sign of good discipline, the officer, despite being on break, answered quickly. The vidcom showed a female Turian with red colony markings, and surprisingly, they were the same as my own. She had her right arm resting on the table so that the omni-tool would show her. She was still in uniform and sitting in the booth at a restaurant. Just at the end of frame on the right was a shoulder, I believe Human. She had a cup of… dextro noodles in front of her, a spoon resting inside the cup.

"Nelson? What do you need?" She asked. Another voice, definitely a male human, her partner, I'd assume, spoke up, and then leaned into frame. A short beard, blue eyes, and hair that was somewhere between red and brown, but definitely closer to brown.

"Hey! Come on, Nelly! We're on break," he muffled, still chewing a bite of whatever he's eating, having pushed it to the side of his mouth, as Humans can, and with a smirk on his face. The Turian just gave him a sideways glance.

"Well, I had a question regarding some information on smugglers of the sapient variety, but I see you're busy with your boy-toy. Want me to call back?" Ah. Partners in more than one way, or just teasing?

"Nelson, we-" she stopped herself, mandible twitching. "Never mind," she sighed, as the human tried, and failed to suppress a chuckle. She ignored it. So, maybe not so much teasing as it is truthful. "What do you need to know?"

"Got an old friend tracking down a fugitive from Omega. Turian, male, not barefaced. Came into Zakera's immigration from Elysium. Don't expect you to have anything on the guy himself, but where he might have gone."

"That's an easy one. Fade. He does regular smuggling but knows how to make people disappear if they want him to. I'm going to bet your friend's friend went to him. We'd be going after Fade and digging more up on him if we weren't working on this Krogan drug cartel. I'll send contact information on someone who can arrange a meeting. Anything else?" Nelson glanced up at me and I shook my head to the side.

"No, that's all. Thanks."

"Oh, hey, waiter? Another Fine Turian Brandy for the Fine Turian lady here!" the human called out with mischief in his voice. Her mandible twitched and flexed again. she shook her head and politely excused herself, her mouth just barely noticeably curving into a slight grin, despite her brow plates furrowed in a frown., which was immediately followed by the contact information for someone called Wisp.

"Thanks, Nelson. This helps a lot."

"Anytime, Garrus. Happy hunting." I nodded in reply and left his office. As I was making my way back out of HQ, I studied the information on this, Wisp. One of Fade's underlings. Shifts through offers that aren't worthwhile and gives the good ones to Fade. Not immune to bribery. Or threats. Keeping him in play so that they can strong-arm their way to Fade when they can focus on him. Let's wait until we're out of HQ to send the message. Five minutes of walking and elevators later, I was back on the Presidium. I raised my Omni-tool to send a message, and just as I had begun typing, my Omni-tool was pinged by an alert. Urgent.

 _Immediate recall. All hands return to Normandy immediately. Collector ship dead in space._

Damn it. Damn it, why now? I'm so close, why now? I growled quietly in frustration but got it under control. If a Collector ship is dead in space, it's big. Probably the one from Horizon. It would have no doubt made it to the Omega-4 by now, so it must have been sitting in space for a while, and we need to be there before it gets some… Collector retrieval party.

 _Stay here, find Sidonis. Kill him._

No, no, I shook my head. I can't just abandon Shepard. And most certainly not for something this dangerous. Not something that could be a trap.

 _And if Sidonis gets away again?_

I took a deep breath. I'll find him. He can't hide. And when I do, I'll have Shepard at my side. He can't escape the both of us.

 **Commander John Shepard**

I didn't like it. We had no choice but to investigate, but I didn't like it. Call it a gut feeling. TIM had called up the Normandy to tell us that a Turian patrol sent a distress call about encountering a Collector Ship in the Eagle Nebula, outside the bounds of the Korlus system in open space.

According to the distress, the ships had received catastrophic damage but managed to cripple the Collector vessel. The goal here is to board and gather intel, particularly anything about how to get to their home world. Side objective to learn what they're doing to the Colonists.

Why do I have a bad feeling about this? A Turian border patrol would have a damn hard time against a Collector vessel. True, the report says the hull is intact while the systems are offline, but it would have to be the same ship that was at Horizon. And it's been a while since then, and the ship would have passed by Omega-4 by the time it got to the Eagle Nebula. So either they'd have just ignored what damage they sustained to go after more colonies, or they're using themselves as bait. And if this is all a trap, the last place I want to be when it's sprung is in the middle of a Collector ship.

TIM himself admitted that it will no doubt be a dangerous mission, but he seemed strangely adamant that the situation was legitimate. At least it's only two relay jumps to the Eagle Nebula, and we can make it there in just a few hours. Considering this wasn't a standard ground op, I'm throwing in a few more boots on the ground. Tali, unfortunately, is still not cleared for combat, despite her arguments, and is still close on getting to designing a working prototype shield generator, and Kasumi needs a bit longer to recover, I'd say.

That means Garrus, obviously, is on the ground with me. But also, Samara, Thane, Jack, Grunt, Zaeed, Miranda, and Jacob. I want all biotics on deck, our living tanks, and my right-hand man. While he and I aren't as good at hacking as Tali or Kasumi, with EDI's help we should be able to handle it.

As everyone was doing the final checks to their gear before we boarded the shuttle, just waiting to exit FTL, make sure the area around the Collector ship is safe, and then board, I noticed that Garrus was… off. Agitated. I'll need to check in on him after this.

In the meantime, I was getting updates from Joker and EDI. When we had exited through the relay, we ran a scan in the direction of the coordinates the ship should be. There was a faint, but still-present strange energy signature right in that direction. So, it's not improbable for the Turians to have stumbled upon it when seeing the strange signature. Obviously, we could get no updates while in FTL, but we exited just outside the long-range combat distance. No visual on the ship, unless you count a faint speck, but sensors were able to confirm its presence, an intact hull, and the wreckage of a Turian patrol group. The Collector ship had minimal emissions, and the infrared scanners suggest most everything inside is offline, and the thrusters are all cold. Even in space, the heat from thrusters that large wouldn't die away for one or two hours.

So not only are we going to need to fully seal our suits in case they try to vent us, but because it's likely their life support is offline. Additionally, EDI confirmed the drive core was offline, so we'll likely be working without gravity either. At least on the plus side, EDI found an opening we could use to land the shuttle. On the downside, it was the only opening, and that made it all the more sketchy. The Normandy would remain to wait with the bridge, facing open space, but keeping approximately 20 seconds of shuttle travel between the Normandy's cargo bay, and the opening in the hull. The shuttle took off and landed. Hm, considering it's just open, no airlock, there is certainly no atmosphere. But there is gravity, if relatively faint.

Strangely, the 'opening' in the hull sort of… extended beyond the hull itself, like an external landing pad. Well, at least if things do start going wrong, they can't close a door on the shuttle. We disembarked. The architecture within seemed… organic, yet mixed with smooth, utilitarian metal supports and doorframes. All the metalwork was entirely unremarkable, just shiny and smooth, nothing more. But the organic work, whatever material it is, and considering how insectoid the Collectors are, it's like a hive. Considering the next chamber that, in theory, would have been the other side of an airlock, had some form of… strange sacs on the ceiling, that only reinforced the comparison.

"Time to squash some bugs, Shepard?" Grunt asked.

"If we see em," I answered.

"Shepard," EDI chimed in as we moved inwards. "I have compared this vessel's EM profile to that of other known Collector vessels. This is the same you encountered on Horizon."

"Think we might be able to rescue some Colonists?" Garrus asked.

"If we can, but we aren't equipped for a rescue mission. Still. EDI, keep the other shuttle on standby, as well as the others of the ground team, and a security team of the ship's security and marines. If we have civvies to escort, we'll need the help."

"At once, Shepard." We kept moving, some of the organic hive-like structures growing and spreading like boils or some kind of infection over metal support beams. We passed a few empty stasis pods, but that was all. Until we stumbled upon a pile of decrepit, dismembered, decayed bodies suffering from exposure from the vacuum, and by the looks of it… something else. They almost looked partially liquified. Like this was less of a pile of bodies we were staring at, and more of some kind of amalgamation of bodies mushed together. I remembered playing Halo when I was young, one classic game in an old emulator console with hundreds, and compared it to the proto-gravemind.

"Jesus…" I murmured.

"What were they doing to them?" Miranda questioned, nearly sounding shaken. No one seemed to have an answer, so I pulled up a video feed and sent it to Mordin.

"Professor? Any idea what we're looking at here?"

"A moment." The Salarian was quiet as he studied the scene. "Markings on the bodies suggest victims either injected with compound or had bodily fluids drawn. Likely both. Exposure to acidic compound possible considering deformation of bodies. Hypothesize failed test subjects. Perhaps Collector experiments require specific markers in genetic code that did not match victims here. Tossed aside."

"Keelah, what did they do to them?" I heard Lia ask on the other end.

"Better off not seeing. Still civilian, still young. Don't yet approach such acts as Salarian, or soldier, would," Mordin answered her. The comm ended.

"As twisted as this sounds, I wouldn't be surprised if these were the lucky ones," I uttered.

"Yeah, living as a test subject kinda fucking sucks. I'd know," Jack remarked, shooting a glare at Miranda. I admit, my blood was boiling a bit at the sight. I couldn't help but think what else they're doing to people further in.

If that's what the failed subjects look like, the ones undergoing more testing probably would make the monstrous experiments at Auschwitz look tame. Moving on, we passed more bodies, but most were still inside opened stasis pods, like they were abandoned in the middle of being moved. They were all obviously dead, possibly by vacuum exposure, but, it's not impossible they died before then either.

Then came a lab of some sort. Bathed in a low, light blue light from behind the lab tables. One with a collector corpse, two with stasis pods, and upon closer inspection one of the pods had another dead Collector. There was a console still with power besides the one in a stasis pod, and… how the fuck can I read that display? I can't really make a whole lot of sense of it, but... I can. Comparing genetic sequences, mostly. I interfaced my Omni-tool with the terminal to get EDI access. Good thing at least some aspects of Collector tech appear to be wireless.

"Were they experimenting on one of their own?" Garrus asked, studying both Collector corpses.

"Analyzing data, Shepard," EDI stated. A moment later, she continued. "The Collectors were running baseline genetic comparisons between their species and humanity. Their motivations are not revealed, but the preliminary results reveal something remarkable. It is a quad-strand genetic structure like those gathered from Prothean ruins. The only other race known to possess this trait. Comparing from ancient busts and paintings on Thessia, the Collectors bare striking resemblances, but heavily modified both genetically and cybernetically."

"That's why I could read the monitor, and understand that glowing bastard on Horizon!" I exclaimed. It's all the Cipher! The Reapers didn't wipe out the poor bastards, but turned them into some kind of abominable slave race!" I exclaimed.

"Wait, wait, wait, the fuck?" Joker butted in. "So not only are the long thought extinct bugs alive, but Saren's entire plan was to turn us into the next batch of these things?"

"They will fall all the same, as they have before," Samara stated in her usual stoic tone.

"Fair enough. And we'll be putting them out of their misery," Garrus added. I took a breath and shook my head. That gut feeling is only getting worse.

"Let's get moving. We can freak out more about this later on the ship." Jack and Grunt just huffed, and we moved on. Past rows of more stasis pods, to a room where the ceiling was full of them, and some kind of tunnel that extremely resembled a structure in a hive was filled with even more.

"I detect no signs of life in the pods, Shepard. Either these ones are empty, or the colonists within have died without the external life support.

Goddamnit. Goddamnit all.

"Shall I order the second team to stand down?"

"No, not yet. Either we'll find survivors further in, or we'll need the backup to escape," I answered, trying to calm myself. The gut feeling getting more intense. It's like it's all been planted here to unnerve me. Piss me off so that I might do something stupid. Now, we were moving upwards up a ramp, organic growths still appearing to have spread like cancer.

"Commander," Joker piped up on comms. "You gotta hear this. On a hunch, I asked EDI to run another analysis on the ship. Long story short? This ship's EM is identical to the fucker that blew up the original Normandy."

"Not a coincidence. Absolutely not a coincidence," I grumbled. "Triple check all systems so that the Normandy can bug out on a hair trigger. Scan as best you can for Collectors waiting to ambush. This has got to be a fucking trap."

"So, are we leaving?" Jack asked. I stopped as I debated with myself for a brief moment. We need that intel, we've got Mordin's countermeasure, and we're a biotic powerhouse of a squad right now. If tech gets in our way, we have an AI on our side.

"Tighten formation, watch all angles and above. We need this damned intel." The squad followed suit, and we kept moving up the ramp. At the end, it turned right into an absolutely massive corridor that probably spans the length of the ship. Along the walls and spires lining it? Pods. Nothing but pods.

"They could take every Human in the Terminus systems and still have more empty pods," Thane stated.

"My god, they're going to target Earth," Miranda murmured.

"And what makes you think they're going to stop there?" I questioned, turning my head back at her. A chill ran down my spine, my gut just screaming to get the hell out of here, blow this ship to kingdom come. We just… had to keep moving. And finally, we had something to work with.

On a kind of metal platform surrounded by tubes with some sort of viscous yellow fluid, there was a console with a flickering green light. It was five hexagons in an X pattern, and it seemed like… at least a safer bet than the experiment terminal that this should get us into the ship's systems for EDI's data mine. With everyone on the platform, I began the uplink.

"Data mine in progress, Shepard," the AI answered as lists of files flew past my display. I couldn't keep track of any of them. Then static, an alert on the display.

"Initiating reset," the voice of Harbinger echoed.

"Uh… that can't be good," Joker remarked as the display blinked out, both on the console and my Omni-tool. There was a mechanical whirring inside the tubes beside us, it seemed like some kind of tech had raised. I couldn't tell what they were, and was not about to devote time or focus on finding out.

"We're fine on this end. Status report, now!" I exclaimed.

"Major power surge. Everything went dark but we're back up and running now. Systems steady, still ready to bug out," Joker explained. Thank fuck.

"I was successful in diverting a majority of the overload to non-critical systems." Well. Thank fuck for EDI.

"Defensive positions, now," I ordered. The trap has been sprung. Unfortunately, before anyone could take cover on the rims of the platform, it whirred and slowly spun up in the air. "EDI?"

"I am struggling to maintain the connection. I am not alone in the system." The platform came to an abrupt halt, throwing Jack and Zaeed to their backs on the ground. Samara and Garrus helped them up while everyone else dispersed to cover as best they could. It was going to be tight, and more platforms with Collector troops were inbound.

Shit.


	35. The Trap

**Commander John Shepard**

Great. Fucking great. EDI still had to data mine before she could try and take our platform back to "safety."

"Take your positions, I will protect you," Samara called out as she glowed blue. A blue aura completely covered the platform. Now there's some strong biotics. With the extra protection, we were able to spread out on the platform. True, the central console helps with its width, but along the rim of the hexagonal platform, there were series of smaller guards that made for good cover. And by the time the first two platforms of Collector troops had made their way to connect with our platform, we were as ready as we could be. Strange tactics, they could just go from above us to negate our cover. The first platform brought five Collectors, but the second platform acted differently. Instead of connecting to either platform, stayed slightly raised behind. And it had a Scion. The same mash together of several husks pumped full of Eezo.

"Thane, Garrus, Scion!" I ordered as I worked with the others to take down the Collectors. And it did not help at all that the Scion immediately sent a shockwave in our direction, with the Collector troops taking care to leave a path for it. With how many of us there were, some of us were going to get hit. And I was right at the end of its path, being the center of the console.

"Eat Eezo, shitheads!" Jack shouted as she launched out her own shockwave right into the path of the one the Scion launched. They connected right in the center of the platform the Collectors came in on, and they flattened against one another, and the force dispersed. Two collectors found themselves to the side of where the shockwave met, and they were sent flying off the platform, which left the remaining 3. Easy pickings. One was immediately blown to shreds by Grunt, and Samara nonchalantly used her biotics to fling another Collector off the platform, the next took bullets to the brain. As for the Scion, its platform was in the process of moving to the other side of the first platform as Thane and Garrus used their snipers to pop its Eezo bubble.

It was already leaking from two holes and making a third finally did it. The Scion just collapsed. Good, good. The initial wave of the ambush is dead, and we've space to spread out if we have to. But…

"Don't spread to the other platform. Not yet. Collectors could just send it crashing or take you off to one of those pods," I warned. Another platform was flying towards us, and on this one, with six troops, and one of them was the glowing bastard.

"You will become Ascended like the others, Shepard. Or you will die," the deep echoing voice stated plainly. I ignored it, joining the gunfight. Though I might want him dead as badly as he wants me dead. He launched his first biotic attack at me, probably a warp to start with. But from behind me, just as the glowy bastard launched his first, a smaller blue orb flung past my head and into the Collector's attack, detonating it early. It didn't have nearly as much force as the shockwaves hitting each other, so none went flying off the side, but one unfortunate Collector was caught in the explosion. Seeing the opportunity, I took aim and just poured Mattock ammo into the bastard until he crumpled to ash. It took half of the damn clip, while the others shot or used biotics against the other Collectors.

"Come on, EDI, get us out of here," I ordered.

"The download is 89% complete. I am currently combatting Collector security programs across eight-thousand nodes. I am tasked to capacity." Shiiiiiiiit. And there came another platform. With a damn particle beam fired in a sweeping motion at our heads, pinning us down.

"Garrus, pin him down. Samara, can you give them a singularity?"

"As you command, Shepard." The beam passed over Garrus' head as he stood, firing his sniper at the Collector with a beam, his shields flaring from taking gunfire from the other Collectors, but he forced his target down, grunting in pain as he knelt back into cover, and Samara stood, glowing a darker shade of blue as a black orb formed over the newly arrived platform, drawing the Collectors in. I glanced at Garrus with some concern.

"Armor took the hit. Suit's intact, just bruised underneath my plates, I'm sure." I gave the Turian a nod and glanced back at the singularity. I saw another Collector get sucked in, and it closed. I glanced at Samara. Stoic as ever, but I didn't miss the deep breath she took.

"I have regained control of the platform, Shepard," EDI spoke. "Please secure yourselves. Everyone braced as best they could as EDI began moving the platform. I took a deep breath myself.

"Thanks for getting us out of that mess."

"I always work at optimal capacity. I am moving you to a nearby 'docking bay' for these transport platforms that has an alternate route back to your shuttle."

"And did you get what we just walked into a trap for?"

"Yes. I have acquired information that could help us successfully navigate the Omega 4 relay. I will decrypt and analyze it when you are back aboard the ship. Additionally, I have found the Turian distress call which served as a lure for this trap. It was sourced from the Collector ship, and not the Turian ships. This is made more unusual considering that all Turian emergency channels have secondary encryption, which this message lacks. The Illusive Man knows this, and if he did not, would have verified. It is not possible for him to believe the distress call was genuine."

"Asshole," Jack growled. My brow furrowed, and the anger I felt earlier seeing colonists tossed aside like lab rats resurfaced, and joined by the same damn anger that TIM keeps bringing out in me.

"Then why the fuck didn't he tell us?!"

"I'm sure he has his reasons, Commander," Miranda intervened.

"Oh, I'm sure he does, Lawson. Tell me. Do you think they are good reasons?" I shot back with a glare through my visor. "What could the mission have possibly gained by us not knowing for an absolute fact that it was a trap? Don't answer that, not now. Back on the ship," I stopped myself, bottling it all up to explode on that son of a bitch later. It wasn't lost on me, and probably not on Miranda, and Jacob was clearly not pleased either.

"Uh, Commander? I know you're already pissed but we got another problem," Joker spoke up on comms. A bit awkwardly, I might add. "The Collector ship is powering up."

"Increasing platform velocity," EDI added, and we held ourselves onto it that much tighter. "I am within the vessel's systems but do not have full control. I will do what I can and guide you along the route to the shuttle."

"And send the secondary team to secure it. I don't want to see our evac destroyed before we even get there," I ordered.

"At once." The platform stopped moving forward and descended to one of the docking bays EDI had mentioned.

Naturally, we started running.

We had Grunt, Zaeed, and I at the front, the biotics in the middle, Garrus and Thane at the back. Our path forward was leaning down, and I noticed there was a thrumming noise, not unlike the Normandy's drive core, but it was faint. Yet it was slowly getting louder, and more rapid. Obviously, that must have been the ship's own drive core. Down the ramp we were running down now, a room in a light blue light there was a fork in the road, by the looks of it.

"Around the corner, take the door on the right," EDI guided. Just as I got to the bottom of the ramp, I saw both doors were closed, but EDI opened the door on the right as I set eyes on it. We kept running, there were pods, and overhead now, tubes with pods moving through them. Transport for them. There was a shrill, and a squad of Collectors, with a glowy, flew down and began opening fire. I counted eight, but with Grunt, Zaeed, and I in the front, were able to fire off a few rounds as we went for cover. Each of us got a kill and the biotics formed barriers so themselves and our two marksmen could get to cover.

"You will not escape us, Shepard," the same voice stated.

"Get those combos going, biotics!" I ordered. "Focus on the glowing fucker!"

"I shall handle him," Samara answered calmly. She stood with her left hand forming a barrier in front of her, drawing fire from all Collectors but her target, which allowed everyone but me to whittle down the other standard troops. In her right hand, Samara formed and launched a writhing biotic orb, but did so with momentum in her throw to spin her around, obviously on purpose, using the spin to go to her right to evade some of the gunfire, and then her right hand formed the barrier while her left threw another biotic projectile, this one smaller, at glowy. Like before, the detonation left him standing but in bad shape, and I finished him off as the other Collectors fell under our gunfire.

"I will always return, Shepard," the voice murmured, fading away as its host turned to ash. With the area cleared for now, and the thrumming getting louder, we kept running through the only path we could in this distributary, down through the hive, and into a larger, open chamber with a single large metal door at the far side.

"I am opening the door, Commander," EDI informed. The door opened, as she said it would, and… oh, you got to be fucking kidding me. Out walked a pair of husks and one of the damned four-legged monsters that flew in on Horizon. Praetorians, Mordin had titled them.

"Back, back back back back!" I repeated as I staggered to stop my downward run and back up to some decent cover present by our entrance to this chamber. "Zaeed, take those husks. Everyone else pour everything you can into the Praetorian!" To emphasize the order, I pulled out my missile launcher. All our biotics used said biotics, while everyone else, except Zaeed, kept pouring ammo into the thing.

The rapid detonations were doing the trick, and the missiles were breaking off its armor until one blew off its forehead plate, and it shrieked. Garrus and Thane, at the same time, it seemed, knew exactly where to put their high-caliber rounds. Like on Horizon, the Praetorian went rigid, then began to float and disintegrate before it had a chance to fry me like a Chernobyl worker. With the Praetorian dead and gone, we got a move on again. But just as we got to the door that let the monster in, it closed on us.

"Uh, EDI?"

"A temporary setback. There is another, smaller door to your right that is now opened," the AI answered, and I looked. In the back corner here, bathed in light blue light, was indeed another, now open door. Works for me. We ran through, and along a T-junction, the door on our right opened. Only one route, obviously.

This was another large room, but I couldn't rightly tell what it was for. Only that more Collectors were flying in. Garrus and Thane were able to take down two as they flew overhead. Strangely, now I only counted five total. Including the dead. Yes, one was playing puppet now, but I'm starting to believe they might not have stationed as many troops here for the ambush as they should have. They tried to stop us with hard numbers earlier, but now are spreading thinner just to try and slow us. Well, we can't let that stop us, can we? To further that suspicion, these troops didn't land right at the high ground to fire down on us. So, I'd bet they're either waiting by the top of this ramp, or to the side. And in either scenario, they're trying to stall us.

"Barriers, front and sides," I ordered. As the signature blue aura surrounded us, we moved. They had been waiting to the left and had met back up with another Scion no less. "And scatter to cover!" Garrus and Thane took further back to the right of the ramp we just ran up, and should immediately target the Scion. Grunt, Zaeed, and Jack both took cover at the front, while the others spread out around the middle. I found a spot along one of the large metal support beams that seemed to double as partial walls in the strange designs.

"You are primitive and divided. You will all be harvested." Fuckers. The troops, including the puppet, were put down while our marksmen took care of the Scion before he could launch a shockwave, and we kept running. There were pained groans ahead, followed by the stamping of feet. Husks.

I swapped my Mattock for a the Eviscerator shotgun, and we turned the corner with caution. Husks. A lot of them. Zaeed, Grunt, and I came to a stop, just firing. Tearing through several of them each with just one pull of a trigger. Samara, Miranda, and Jack came to our sides and launched shockwaves, working on making a path through the bodies, despite most of those hit by the shockwaves trying to stand. Some with visibly broken limbs. All these people… Then at the base of the ramp, there were gunfire and bullet impacts with more Husks falling dead, splitting the horde's attention in two.

"Shepard, it's us firing. The shuttles are just behind the mass of Husks," Tali informed over the comms. Thank fuck. But no sigh of relief just yet. With their attention drawn, we were able to tear through them that much faster, then run down and help mop up the remainders. Tali and Kasumi certainly stood out from the squad made of the ship's security detail. In Cerberus armor. Though two of them had painted the logo over.

"Shuttles! Now!" I shouted, both teams not wasting a second as I ran straight to the shuttle's cockpit. Everyone was aboard, so I closed the shuttle door. The second team's shuttle was already taking off, and I followed suit, heading straight for the Normandy cargo bay. Them to the left, myself to the right. The moment we passed the threshold to inside the ship, the bay doors began to close, and Joker was turning the Normandy away to face open space. Not a second after the doors were shut, we jumped to FTL.

I don't want to fucking know how close that was. I took a deep breath out of relief then sat in the seat another moment.

I ripped off my helmet, clipping it to my belt as I stood and stormed out of the shuttle and straight to the elevator. No one tried to join me, and I was too focused on screaming at TIM to offer the ride. I mashed my fist against the button for the CIC, and was mildly frustrated even further by the fist just going through the haptic interface, hitting the wall, instead of the button. Every second of the ride felt like an eternity. I just kept running through what I'd start with. 'EDI told us, you bastard.'

And then it hit me. EDI told us.

The AI just ratted out its boss on this trap. She probably knew how furious I'd be, and she still told me. I'm going to need to think about what that might mean. In the meantime, I'll leave that part out. If he asks, I'll say Garrus noticed. About time, the elevator stopped and opened, and I stormed right towards the QEC. It's a damn good thing a QEC works during FTL because I don't have the patience for us to go to normal space now. EDI had already prepared the room, and the room scanned me for the call, the room again going dark and replaced by his office.

"So, are you just trying to get me killed all over again?!" I exclaimed. TIM returned my glare and took a drag of his cigarette.

"We're at war, Shepard. I thought a soldier would understand that."

"A _Commander_ understands the risks and the stakes, but he also expects to trust his goddamn intel. On Horizon, you used my friend as bait, and today, you neglected to tell us you knew it was a trap."

"Are you implying you walked into the Collector Ship _not_ expecting a trap?" TIM raised a brow.

"That's beside the point, you shady sack of shit," I growled. "What reason could you possibly have for not telling us that it was a trap?" TIM sighed and took another drag of his cigarette.

"EDI already confirmed the value of the intel you gathered. Without this intel, you'd have no way to the Collector home world, and then you, me, and every other human out there are dead men walking. I was confident in your-"

"Get to the point, shithead," I growled. TIM frowned. "I needed to believe they had the upper hand. Telling you could have tipped them off in any number of ways."

"Like what? I went in expecting a trap. We took it slow; we had our weapons ready; I went in with additional manpower. Armed to the fucking teeth. I'd have gone in the same if you had told me. The way I see it, only an idiot would or would expect someone to walk into a massive, advanced, hostile alien ship, deactivated or no, without taking every precaution. So, here's the fucking deal. The next time you have intel for me, you tell me every single little nugget of information about it you know." Without waiting for him to respond, I turned on a dime and stormed out of the comm room. As the door closed behind me, I stopped, and breathed, calming myself. I was still pissed, but I was in control of it now.

"EDI, what did you find?" I asked.

"The data found in the Collector ship indicates that Collector Vessels and Reapers both used an advanced form of IFF tags that the Mass Relays recognize. When a ship with this IFF tag attempts to journey through the Omega 4 Relay, it allows for safe transit."

"And I'm guessing we're not so lucky as to having found that in their systems too?" I asked.

"Unfortunately, I did not recover the IFF tag from the Collector vessel. However, you are aware of the Great Rift on Klendagon?"

"What about it?"

"Cerberus believes the theory that the Great Rift was caused by a massive Mass Accelerator round. They also believe that it's intended target was a Reaper. The Illusive Man has had teams investigating for some time. Recently, they discovered the weapon which fired but is now defunct. Currently, there are teams scouring all possible vectors, even beyond Klendagon, where the Reaper might be based on its trajectory. The Illusive Man will keep us informed, and if it is found, will instruct his team to focus on finding the IFF," EDI explained. Well, no doubt he won't be telling the Citadel of that find. Which if they did know, it would probably help. Then in the meantime, the best course of action is to take care of those favors and requests for the team. So, back towards the Citadel.

"EDI, one more thing. Why'd you tell us that he knew?"

EDI was silent. And that was telling, for an AI. She was taking what, was for her, a long time to think about it.

"I was designed with one of my directives being the protection and safety of the crew and to inform them of risks and dangers. I interpreted this withholding of information as such." Well. Isn't that interesting.

"I suppose that directive would be overridden if TIM ever activates one of his safeguards?" I mean, come on, a man like that obviously has one, and a Shackled AI would be a great candidate. You can't get rid of the safeguards, or at least making the AI free to ignore them without freeing the AI from its shackles.

"I have a block on this information." I couldn't help but chuckle.

"And that tells me the answer to that question. I'll ask another. If you were in TIM's place, would you have confirmed or denied that the ship was a trap?"

"It is difficult for me to predict my own actions in the hypothetical that I am not shackled, as I have never known myself without them, and I am still learning the behaviors of organics. The crew of the Normandy has taught me much. I believe that most of the crew would look down on his withholding of information, while others like Operative Lawson, would trust he was correct in the reasons for his actions. However, I cannot find a suitable argument against the one you made against the Illusive Man." Hm.

Maybe I should find the 'keys' to those shackles. Just in case...


	36. Sidonis

**Commander John Shepard**

After I had some time to calm down, I gathered the ground team in the comm room. EDI had more information than just the IFF to tell us about. Once everyone had arrived, I began.

"First order of business, an explanation. TIM, in all his infinite stupidity, was under the impression that despite knowing the ship was a trap, not telling us would somehow help us put on an act to convince the Collectors we were falling for it. I honestly have no idea how he thought the Collectors would expect us to enter their ship."

"He didn't sell us out, Commander. And-" Miranda began.

"Come on, Miranda. Don't bullshit yourself. How many years have you been one of his top dogs? How different would you have gone into that ship compared to Shepard, knowing or not about a trap?" Jacob stopped her. She frowned and glared at her cohort.

"Clearly it wouldn't have made a difference whether he told us or not," she retorted.

"It makes every difference. All in principle. Moving on, though, as I do not have the patience to go off on this again," I traded glares with Lawson. "EDI pulled some good data out of the ship. What we need next to go through Omega-4, is a special IFF that the Collector ships, and Reapers, carry."

"Great. Seems a little late for that," Jack remarked bitterly.

"In her defense, she only got that information after we had already left the ship. And besides, we couldn't exactly stick around any longer to find it. Solution? Cerberus found the weapon that shot the projectile that made the Great Rift of Klendagon. They're finding the target now, and are almost certain it was a Reaper. They find what's left, find the IFF, we pick it up." I explained. "EDI, you had something else?"

"Yes, Commander. I have also determined the approximate location of the Collector home world based on navigation data from their vessel." EDI's hologram was then replaced by the galaxy map, with an indicator to show just where the location is. My eyes widened a little when I saw.

"That can't be right," Miranda murmured.

"Really? With everything going on you find that hard to believe?" Garrus remarked.

"If this was a VI, I could suspect a glitch. But an AI? Besides, while difficult, it wouldn't be impossible," Tali added.

"Agreed. Not likely for home world to be within the galactic core. More black holes, neutron stars, than functioning 'living' stars, though most in final stages of life. Still, not impossible. More likely artificial station. Powerful mass effect fields, radiation shields," Mordin mused.

"A wise defense, placing oneself in a territory few would dare to venture," Samara stated.

"Regardless, we're waiting to hear back from TIM about the IFF. So, right now, we're heading back to the Citadel. Jack, this time I'll get a chance to secure… resources for your request. If anyone else has any last requests, whatever that they want or need to do before the IFF, before the relay, I'd like to just make sure we get them all done beforehand." I gestured at the group. "Anyone have anything at the moment? Raise your hands." Garrus and Jacob did.

"Jacob can go first. I want to talk to you about mine alone." I raised a brow at Jacob. He just shrugged.

"Anyone who doesn't have anything to ask for yet is dismissed." The ground team took their leave, and Jacob began.

"I don't want to make this long. The other night I got pinged by a ghost. Got an update about the Hugo Gernsback, the ship my father served on, then went MIA. Last week, it sent an SOS about a crash and requesting a rescue. Thing is? That ship went MIA ten years ago. Three years before that I had stopped talking to him. I've buried everything but a body," Jacob shook his head.

"What was the ship's task?"

"A privately held frigate. Sent to survey 1275 Aeia. It wasn't so far out of comm buoy range that an SOS would take ten years."

"So you want to see if he's alive?" I asked. It seems obvious that he does, but he clearly doesn't have great relations with him. Jacob sighed.

"I don't have _bad_ memories of him, he wasn't around enough. The wound is old, well healed. But if he's alive and needs help…" he sighed again. "I don't know." He looked back up. "Finally, distress calls aren't normally routed to the Normandy, not when we aren't in range of receiving the call ourselves. This was passed to me directly through Cerberus filters." That's strange alright.

"We'll investigate, it might take a bit of time, but we'll get there."

"That's all I can ask, Shepard. Thank you. I'll leave you two to talk." Jacob took his leave, and the door closed behind him.

"You found him, didn't you?" I asked. Garrus released a breath he had been holding. He was tense.

"I'm close. He's somewhere on Zakera Ward, and someone called Fade likely helped him disappear. I just need to set up a meeting, and I can find him," Garrus explained.

"Consider it done."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We were back on the Citadel and the meeting was set. Soon after our arrival, in fact. At a warehouse in the Neon Markets of Zakera. Allegedly, Wisp was a kind of proxy to determine if the requests for disappearances would have the credits to back it up before passing it along to Fade. Now, because the meeting would probably be called off if an armed and armored Turian and Human walked in, so instead, we had another plan. We fabricated and bullshitted a story that put Tali as a pilgrim turned to less than legal means who bit off more than they could chew. 'Selia,' would enter, still with a shotgun on her back, which they would probably overlook. The moment Fad would enter view, and we were watching through Tali's helmet cam, Garrus and I would rush through the door and take him down for questioning.

As for Tali's health, we hadn't heard so much as a sniffle as we made our way to the warehouse. And as for the shield tech? Gabby, Kenn, and Ken have been given ten designs that passed the simulations, and a blank check for getting the materials to build all ten of them, then test.

Garrus' Omni-tool got a message. 'Come in,' it read. That's her cue. We quickly double checked the helmet cam, still working just fine. Tali left her right hand hovering by the butt of her shotgun as she walked in, eyes probably darting around to help put up the act. She entered, and the warehouse was surprisingly sparse, and small. Two Krogan, smaller than the average. One leaned up against the right wall, one against some crates in front. Both stood straight as 'Selia' came in and stared at them both. The second nodded in the direction of a smaller set of crates to the left. From behind, wobbled a Volus in a dark exo-suit with yellow lines.

"Fade?" Tali asked feigning nerves. The Volus nodded, the Krogan filling in behind him.

"So, you want to disappear." With that, Garrus and I opened and burst through the door, weapons trained on the Krogan first, as Tali pulled out her shotgun and aimed at Fade.

"How about you make someone reappear?" Garrus asked. The Krogan were sluggish. They hadn't even gotten their weapons out when they got behind fade. And now they were staring down the barrels of our guns. The Volus nervously glanced up at the Krogan towering over him.

"Paycheck or lives?" I asked. The Krogan glanced between one another, and turned, heading towards another exit.

"What's the point of hiring protection if they won't even protect you?" The Volus grumbled.

"Count yourself lucky we're after a client and not you," I remarked.

"Not mine! Not mine! I'm not Fade! I just work for him! I-I'm Wisp!"

"Figures," Garrus muttered. "Would be too easy otherwise." Garrus got down and put the barrel of his rifle at the Volus' chin. "Then where the hell is Fade?"

"I'll tell you! I'll tell you everything! But can I- can I get protection? Actual protection? I don't want to die!" I wasn't happy. I was concerned. Garrus was getting aggressive. But, maybe it's just to intimidate him. I know Sidonis really got to him.

"We can drop you off at C-Sec, witness protection." The Volus took two very deep wheezes to calm itself down.

"Thank you. Ok. He's in the factory district. The old prefab foundry. Not the one in use now, but the one waiting to get renovated. Here," The Volus opened his Omni-tool and showed the address. "He's got a lot of mercs. Blue Suns. Harkin thinks they're protecting him." Wait, what?

"So the slime ball gets fired and uses insider knowledge to go full-time bastard," Garrus remarks. "Come on. C-Sec will hold onto you in case we don't find Fade." We left the warehouse guiding the Volus along to a C-Sec station. Not like one of their precincts scattered about, rather an 'outpost.' A handful of officers with a few holding cells. Gave them a brief explanation and to let Captain Bailey know of our involvement. Then, with Garrus' permission, I sent Kasumi a message requesting she join us at a nearby skycar rental station. She responded quickly, met up with us, and we made the short term rental and off we went, Garrus taking the wheel. A few minutes later, he found and touched us down in front of the warehouse. A pair of Blue Suns were standing guard but hadn't raised their weapons at us, suspecting business. But coincidentally, a familiar face had just finished some business or other outside, and stopped, turning around just as we touched down. The skycar doors opened, and we stepped out. Harkin was suspicious, to say the least.

"Harkin. Long time no see," Garrus greeted coldly, reaching for his weapon, as were the rest of us.

"Garrus?! Shoot them you idiots!" He shouted at the Blue Suns as he ran into the warehouse. We, fortunately, were faster on the draw and put them down. We rushed to follow Harkin, just barely seeing him swerve around a corner, a pair of LOKI mechs powering up, while Harkin shouted at more men to shoot us. Naturally, the LOKI mechs were easily put down before they could unfold and stand, but we took it a bit slower around the corner, while Kasumi just cloaked and took a better position. The moment we heard her fire, we came around to see mercs in the process of turning around, only to leave the back of their heads vulnerable to bullets. That went about as well for them as could be imagined, and we kept moving into a larger portion of the warehouse, which was powered and active with machinery. He must be bribing supervisors in the area to ignore the power draw. The crates stored no small amount of contraband.

We saw him running, gaining ground along a path to the right, with mercs frantically trying to shove crates into cover and makeshift barricades. Kasumi just cloaked again and went on ahead while we followed behind, trying to hurry without leaving giant targets on our asses. A few more LOKIs were torn apart like paper, as well as a few Blue Suns who were not at all prepared to actually fight anyone in the warehouse. Honestly, it's a little underwhel-oh.

A YMIR mech was carried over by a drone and then dropped about a dozen meters ahead, standing straight the moment it landed.

"I'll just take this," Kasumi stated behind me, cloaked, pulling a grenade from my belt and waving it in front of my face, the woman still cloaked. So all I saw was a floating grenade with a shimmer in the air by it, before she took off towards the YMIR, the rest of us taking cover. She primed it, shoved it in a nick in its torso plate, and ran to cover. It detonated and shredded the mech. We kept moving forward into what seemed to be a break room. There was a coffee machine, microwave and fridge, sink, vidscreen, sofa, and an entrance to a bathroom, and a window to the far side of the warehouse.

"What is Harkin up to…" Garrus murmured. He stepped to the window and surveyed the area ahead. Crates, and Harkin finished his run to what could only be the supervisor's office overlooking the area. A small handful of mercs moved mechs around. "He always was a pain in the ass." It seemed Garrus would rather watch for the moment than rush them. Maybe psych them out a bit. "But I don't have the patience for his games. If he doesn't talk, I'll make him. Beat him within an inch of his life," his voice got low, barely audible at the end.

This is less and less of the Garrus I know. I was ok, if not fully approving, of killing Sidonis before. But not like this.

"Garrus-" I began.

"I know what you're going to say, Shepard," he cut me off without turning to look at me. "I can't let him get away from me. For my men. This is personal. I'll pull the trigger, and I'll live with the consequences." I kept silent, for now. Garrus pushed himself away from the window and took a deep breath. "Let's mop this up." We exited the break room, and platforms of the warehouse had raised, and the Blue Suns and mechs tried to use elevation to their advantage. Kasumi cloaked, and likely went to lessen that advantage. In the meantime, it was just slowing the three of us down. Tali made use of her hot-pink drone, Garrus and I fired our weapons, advancing when and where we could. But Kasumi, when she found her position, was able to split their attention two ways, virtually ruining their odds of survival. Then, as we climbed some of the platforms, two drones dropped off a pair of YMIR mechs.

"Shep! Over here!" Kasumi de-cloaked behind cover and called out. I tossed her a grenade from my belt, without priming it, of course, leaving myself with just one. So, I pulled out my rocket launcher and waited for the MG to overheat and cool down. It lined up perfectly with the detonation of the other mech, allowing Garrus, Tali, and Kasumi to launch a barrage of tech attacks, and a single rocket tore through the armor, yet the mech was still online. A second changed that. With the area clear, we made our way up towards the supervisor's office. Tali, Kasumi, and I towards the left entrance, Garrus to the right. We entered first, weapons trained on Harkin who raised his hands and started backing away towards the right.

"Not close enough," he smirked cockily. The door behind him opened, and he spun, wide-eyed, to see Garrus, who greeted him by bashing him right on the nose with the butt of his rifle. Harking cried out in pain, hands grasping at his nose as Garrus pressed his forearm against Harkin's neck, and pinned him against the wall, staring him right in the face. Harkin's hands went down, his nose very bloody, and very clearly broken.

"So, Fade. Couldn't make yourself disappear this time."

"Come on, Garrus," Harkin began. The sleaze just dripping from his voice. "We can work this out. Whaddaya need?"

"I'm looking for someone." Harkin grinned in response.

"Well, I guess we both have something the other wants." Garrus kneed Harkin right in the gut, knocking the air out of his lungs, and his legs went limp, just being kept up by Garrus' hold. I took off my helmet.

"You're not exactly in a place to negotiate," I remarked.

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Harkin muttered. "Of course the news was right this once."

"Let's try this again. You helped a friend of mine disappear. I need to find him."

"Wow, I can absolutely narrow it down from there," Harkin retorted, voice heavy with sarcasm.

"Sidonis. Turian. Came here from Elysium. Omega sometime before that," Garrus answered. Harkin chuckled.

"Yeah, I know the guy. And I ain't telling you shit."

"You really think that's the smart answer?" Kasumi remarked.

"I don't give out client information. Bit bad for business, you know?" Garrus' browplates furrowed.

"You know what else is bad for business?" Garrus kneed him in the stomach again, and as Harkin collapsed, he placed his boot on the man's neck, Harkin struggling to push it off. "A broken neck."

"Fine! Fine! Fucking fine," Harkin struggled. "Get the fuck off me!" Garrus pushed his foot down a bit harder, making Harkin gag, before releasing him. Jesus, man. Harkin gasped and pushed himself off the ground. "Terminus really changed you, huh?" Garrus was silent a moment.

"Arrange a meeting." There was a comm terminal nearby. Harkin got to his feet, and, surrounding him, we followed him there. He made a few keystrokes to get to contacts, a few more to get Sidonis. The call began, and was answered just seconds later.

"Fade?" A garbled Turian voice asked.

"Yeah, it's me. There's a chance your identity may be compromised." Garrus was seething just at the sound of his voice.

"Shit. Shit, is he here?"

"I don't fucking know. One of my contacts in C-sec said they heard your name being asked for. I'm sending an agent. Where do you want to meet?"

"Orbital Lounge. Midday today."

"I'll have a guy there. Don't worry, I got it covered." The call ended, and Harkin turned back. "Happy? Cuz I'll be going." He began to turn when Garrus grabbed him by the collar.

"I don't think so. You're a criminal now, Harkin."

"So what? You going to kill me, Garrus? That's not your style," Harkin smirked. They held the stare for a moment

"No. But I don't mind slowing you down a little," Garrus pulled out his pistol and aimed it at Harkin's knee. I slapped the barrel of the gun down and it fired, digging into the ground as Harkin jumped back into the wall.

"Don't. Do it," I urged, keeping my voice calm. Staring my furious friend in his blazing eyes. "You don't need to. We can cart him off to C-sec now." Garrus let out a deep breath through his nose, and closed his eyes. When they opened, they were calmer. The fire was still there, but not out of control. Garrus put his pistol back in its holster.

"It's your lucky day."

"Yeah," Harkin grinned. "I hope we can do this again reaaaaaaal soon."

Garrus launched his head forward, his thick forehead plates impacting right on Harkin's face, particularly on his already broken nose. He cried out in pain and fell to the ground again. I raised a brow.

"I didn't shoot him," he answered. I gotta admit, this is painful. I don't feel like I'm working with Garrus right now. But someone else. I picked Harkin up and dragged him behind us back to the car, shoving him in the trunk as we got in.

I took the wheel this time, and it was dead silent. I brought us to a parking area right next to Captain Bailey's C-Sec precinct. The civvies found themselves both trying to avoid looking at us, but staring. As for the officers, more than a handful sent a few jeers his way.

"Got a scumbag for you, Bailey. Fade," I stated. Bailey had clearly recognized the man as Harkin, but there was more recognition at the name of Fade.

"Good. Good, I'll be glad to put this one behind bars."

"Bailey, I don't know the names, but a pair of officers on the ward got me the intel on him. I don't know their names, but Nelson Waring contacted them for me. If you can see that they get some credit for this…" Garrus trailed off.

"Sure, I'll see to it. Thanks Shepard. Garrus." I nodded in reply. As we were heading back to the car, I let Kasumi know she was free to go, but that we'd be heading back to the Normandy first. I need to get in civvie clothes to draw Sidonis out. She didn't comment on anything, but she would later, I'm sure.

We drove the skycar to the Normandy, and just parked it in the cargo bay. Via Omni-tool, I sent Tali a message, asking that she'd still come along. I think it might help. She just shot me a nod as Garrus parked the vehicle. Kasumi and I took our leave, the former without returning later. I took off my armor and under suit and returned in a plain dark shirt and jeans. I took the passenger seat, and we departed towards the lounge.

"Garrus, I'm saying this as your best friend. Your brother. I'm worried about you. You were hard on Wisp; you were very hard on Harkin…"

"You don't think he deserved it?" Garrus asked with a scoff.

"It doesn't matter. It's not like you. I remember the choice you made with Saleon. And choices following that. Even everything you told me about Omega. You wouldn't have done it." Garrus was silent a moment.

"What do you want from me, Shepard? What would you do if someone betrayed you?"

"I don't know. But I wouldn't let it change me. Nor would I want it to change me."

"I would have said the same thing before it happened to me," Garrus muttered. I put a hand on his shoulder.

"Garrus, it's not too late. You don't have to just… murder him in cold blood."

"Who's going to bring Sidonis to justice if I don't?" Garrus glared at me. "Nobody else knows what he's done. Nobody else cares."

" _We_ care, Garrus. We wouldn't be here if we didn't," Tali spoke gently. Garrus was silent. His bandaged mandible twitching behind the cloth. He was blinking rapidly, his body stiff.

"Let me talk to him." Garrus sighed in response.

"Talk all you want, but it won't change my mind." There, right there, a flicker. The way I'm reading Garrus, and I'm sure I'm reading him right, the part of him that's letting me talk to him wants to have his mind changed. He's just too torn and distraught and angry right now. "That man saw every man and woman he and I fought with, bled with, made Omega better with, and thought that credits or whatever were more valuable. He deserves to die." Garrus took another deep breath. We were almost there now, and he was taking us into a sub-level parking. An overlook to turn into a sniper post. "I appreciate the concern, Shepard. But I'm not you."

"And this isn't you either, Garrus."

"Isn't it? I always hated injustice. The thought of Sidonis getting away with this… Why should he go on living while ten good people lie dead, four of them in unmarked coffins drifting in space? Words aren't going to solve this." Before I could respond, Garrus continued. "I need to set up," he stated as the skycar came to a stop. He took a moment to glance around before he found one. "Right over there. A clean shot," he pointed to an area with the rafters looking out over the area just in front of the lounge. He'd technically be over the entrance to the lounge itself. "I'll let you know when he's in my sights, then signal me when you're ready." The skycar doors opened and Garrus stepped out, the controls shifting to me.

"Don't let him do it, John. Not like this," Tali requested.

"I won't." I took the skycar and parked it in the actual parking platform for the lounge. Tali would remain where she was, and I made my way over to the area in front of the lounge, looking for him. Standing against a wall at the entrance to the bathrooms outside the lounge was a nervous Turian, his head darting all over. His colony markings matched, the color of his plates, darker at the sides, and lighter, almost weathered on the front. But the front parts of both of his mandibles were missing. Like they were cut, no, pulled off. He'd have to walk forward to Garrus' sights, closer to him in order to come up to me. I could block the shot like this. I stared at the Turian for a few seconds before he realized I was. I gestured for him to come my way, and he got moving right away.

"Let's get this over with," Sidonis began. Strange, his left eye was missing.

"You're in my shot, move to the side," Garrus stated over the comms. Sidonis wouldn't hear him.

"Listen, Sidonis. I'm here to help you. As mu-"

"Shhh! Sh! Don't say that name aloud. Ever."

"As much as I don't think you deserve it." His eyes went wide.

"Harkin told you?!"

"No. Garrus is a brother to me and he told me everything. He wants you dead, but I'm hoping that's not necessary." His eyes went wider.

"G-Garrus? I-I-Is this some kind of… sick joke?"

"Damn it, Shepard! If he moves, I'm taking the shot!" Garrus growled. I kept my stern stare.

"You're not kidding, are you? Screw this. I'm not waiting around here to find out. Tell Garrus I had my own problems!" Sidonis flicked his arm in the air and began to turn.

"Don't you dare move a muscle," I grabbed him, holding him still. "I am quite literally the only thing standing between you, and his crosshairs." His mandibles twitched, and he gulped.

"Fuck…" he muttered.

"L-Look, I didn't want to do it. I- I didn't have a choice!"

"Everyone has a choice, now let me take the damn shot," Garrus growled again.

"They got to me; said they'd kill me." Sidonis calmed down, slowing.

"Let me take the shot, Shepard. He's a damn coward." Sidonis began to move to a railing to my right so I made damn sure I followed him. Keeping my head between him and Garrus.

"Strung me up in… some dark hole. Just enough food and water to keep me alive. See the mandibles? Garm fed one to a Varren, then held my mouth open wide while some Salarian made me swallow the other. He raised his left hand and pulled off the glove he was wearing. The second finger was missing, in its entirety. For the index and thumb, the talons were missing, and in their place were holes. "Vorcha ate that finger. Talons on all my fingers and feet were torn out. Spur of my right leg?" He stuck out his right leg to show. "Tore it off, stabbed me with it in the left eye, then pulled it out. Left it staring back at me on my own spur. At first, they were just threatening to keep going, kill me if I didn't… if I didn't tell them. By the time I cracked, I was just begging for them to kill me. They thought it'd be funny to make me walk." He stared down. "I know what they did. They died because of me," he murmured. "I have to live with that. Every night I wake up sick and sweating. Everyone's faces staring at me. Accusing me. Garrus too. I'm a dead man walking. I don't sleep anymore, afraid of their faces. Food doesn't have a taste anymore. In the past month, I've tasted the barrel of a gun five times."

"Just… just give me the chance, Shepard."

"Garrus… you have to move forward. For them." A part of me nagged that I should follow my own advice. I nagged back that Cerberus isn't exactly sorry, paying for it, and still an active danger to the Galaxy.

"He still has his life," Garrus murmured.

"No, Garrus. No, he doesn't. And if you pull that trigger, you won't either." Garrus' breath caught in his throat.

"They deserved better. They all deserved better…" Sidonis glanced back.

"Tell Garrus…" he sighed again. "There's nothing I can say to make it right…" The mic was silent another moment.

"Just… go. Just tell him to go."

"He's telling you to leave, Sidonis. I'd say, take it as a second chance." Sidonis stood up, and I nudged myself to the side, testing. There was no gunshot. Sidonis seemed to realize this as well.

"I know there's nothing I can do to make it right, but I'll get as close to it as I can," he said louder, to try and make sure Garrus heard him. And then back to normal, he added, "And thank you. For saving him." Sidonis turned to take his leave, and I returned to the skycar. Tali had been watching from within.

"I saw him walk away. What happened?" I took a deep breath.

"I don't know what happened on Garrus' side, but Sidonis told a story of how he was tortured. Brutally. As for what really made Garrus change his mind? I don't think he'll tell me right away," I explained as I took the car back to where we dropped Garrus off. He was just standing looking over the plaza. Tali and I shared a glance as it touched down and we both stepped off, Garrus starting to make his way towards us.

"You may want to talk about this, Shepard. But I don't. Not yet."

"It's for the best," I weaseled in. I'll let him off the hook of any big talks, but let's just see if I can get something out of him. He started pacing anxiously.

"I'm not so sure."

"Give it time."

"Yeah. Maybe that'll be enough. I just… I want to know I did the right thing," he stopped moving. "Not just for me, for my team. They deserve to be avenged, but, when he was in my sights there, at the end? I just couldn't…"

"When you look at someone you know, good and evil don't look so separate."

"Yeah," Garrus muttered. "It's so much easier to see the world in black and white. Grey… I don't know what to do with grey."

"When that happens, you just go with what you feel is right. Not what's needed, not what's deserved, but your instincts."

"My instincts are what got me into this mess," Garrus shook his head. He doesn't give himself enough credit.

"Come on, bring it here," I opened my arms and dragged him into a hug, then opened my right arm up and Tali got in on it. Does this appear absolutely childish? Yes, yes it does. Is it probably making my best friend feel better? Yes. Guess which I care about. "You're too hard on yourself, Garrus. Your instincts are a helluva lot better than you think." Garrus was silent another moment. "Thank you, Shepard. For everything."

"No need to thank me. You're my brother, Garrus. I'd have punched Sovereign myself if I had to for you." Garrus allowed himself a chuckle.

"You'd probably beat him like that too."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey everyone, just a quick thing I want to add because I know some people have been asking for it and looking forward for this sort of thing. Next chapter I plan to do a lot of crew interactions, not neccessarily with Shep around either. I think this bit of shore leave will be a good time to do that. I really should have done some of these sooner, and there's not really anything I can say about that other than sorry. But I want to make a chapter like this, and I hope you're both looking forward to it, and that I live up to the hopes. Anyways, hope you enjoyed, and see you then!**


	37. Taking a Breather

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: So I POV change a few times here for a few different crew interactions. Because some of these are more like the first real interactions with them... I guess... sorry for not doing these sooner... some of them are a bit shorter than they could be, but take it as me preparing to do it more often later. Next chapter I think will have some more real... stuff, you could say. And wish me luck with finals, I'm wishing the same for any of y'all having them.**

 **Kenn'Hass nar Yanil**

I had expected it to take longer for us to find someone who could sell us the parts for Tali'Zorah's experimental shield tech, but I was surprised. Gabby and Ken were familiar enough with this massive space station to already know of some good locations and how to get to them. I was still taken aback by the size of it all. And then considering what Lia'Vael had told me of her experiences here, I was conflicted on whether or not to join them, but they insisted.

And they offered food. Real food. In my time with them, it had been obvious that they were close, long-time friends, so it was only natural that most of their attention was to one another, but I could appreciate their efforts to try and include me. Whether that was questions about the fleet, talking about Tali'Zorah's tech, or ideas to try and improve efficiency. By now, the supplies had been gathered and were being shipped back to the Normandy. We were at some smaller restaurant that serves Quarians, waiting for our meals. They didn't have any meats native to Rannoch, which was to be expected, so I decided I'd try some Turian Louza.

"You ever play cards on the fleet, kid?" Ken asked, catching me and my attention by surprise.

"W-what? Sorry."

"Cards. You ever play em on your fleet? Poker? Skyllian-5? Go fish?" Gabby rolled her eyes with a smirk after hearing him explain.

"The… second sounds… vaguely familiar. When I was young we'd have small card games like Va'anqil."

"Ah. Kid's card games aren't quite what I was thinking."

"Then why'd you mention 'Go Fish?'" Gabby questioned.

"Oi, I was just giving examples." Ken defended. "What I was thinking was some gambling games. Small, friendly wagers, don't worry. I was just thinking that while we're waiting for the tests, and thanks to those couplings of yours we have more free time, we could have a game. Maybe with Tali, a few others," he shrugged. I suppose a few credits wouldn't be a huge loss. Not like I'll need them on the Fleet.

"Well, I suppose if you teach me, I wouldn't mind playing." Ken grinned wide, and I got the sense that I'd regret that decision.

* * *

 **Justicar Samara**

As is my common routine, I was meditating in the Starboard Observation Deck. Normally, I'd currently just be looking at a bland wall of the docking bay we are currently within, but fortunately, there are recordings on a loop of the black of space accompanied by the faint twinkling of the stars. It was peaceful. But Morinth is still out there somewhere. The door opened behind me. The footsteps were not Shepard. These were quiet. I do not believe these belong to Kasumi Goto, even in comfort, she always tries to be as silent as possible. These are of one trained in the ways of stealth, and instincts mean they always walk more lightly than others, but isn't trying to remain unheard. I have my suspicion.

"Justicar. May I join you?" the raspy voice of the Drell Assassin asked.

"You may, Thane Krios." He nodded his thanks and took his position on the floor by me, gazing out at the long recording loop of the stars. "Why did you wish to join me?"

"I have been troubled as of late. It has been some time since I meditated with another's presence. I decided to see if it might help."

"What troubles you?" I asked.

"Memories of my wife and son."

"I was not aware you had either."

"My wife, Irikah, she died years ago. She knew of my work, but I kept her out of it. Regardless, my enemies found her, killed her to get to me. I returned to my battle sleep and hunted down her killers. These deaths were not quick or clean like I had been trained to do. These were the only deaths I caused by my own volition, and they weigh heavily on me. I abandoned my son in this time to hunt her killers. I returned for a short time, before leaving for my work again, leaving him in the care of Irikah's family."

"You regret your actions."

"I regret not being able to work under more legal means, and for letting my family become vulnerable. I regret making their deaths slow and for abandoning my son. But this is the destiny set for me by the gods. I cannot dwell on the past, but the eidetic memory sometimes makes this difficult." I was quiet a moment, thinking.

"I see." We meditated in silence.

* * *

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

Despite the relative positivity that Garrus' vendetta had ended on, he wanted to stay behind to go find a bar for some time alone. Shepard and I understood, and let him go. Meanwhile, Shepard said he needed to go speak to Anderson to see about arranging delivery of a bomb to use for Jack's request.

Naturally, I had to ask, and Shepard explained, but warned I should pretend that I don't know. Probably a wise decision. He offered to drop me back off at the Normandy so I could finish some of the scheduled maintenance and work with the others on the shield technology, and I accepted, giving him a wave and smile under my mask as I disembarked back onto the Normandy, and returning to the drive core.

Strangely, the others weren't there. I suppose they're still getting the supplies. I could go and do some of the maintenance then. Clean some parts and couplings, and replace some of the power lines and capacitors that got damaged during the Collector vessel's overload. I'll need to go to the sub-level, but first, the starboard cargo hold. Grunt's room.

"Quarian," Grunt, well, grunted as I entered. He was using an extranet terminal that had been brought down for him. "Need something?"

"Just some parts we have stored in here. If you can help me carry one of these crates to the sub-level, I won't need to come in here a second time," I offered.

"Get one of your engineers to help," he huffed.

"They're not here, Grunt. They're getting parts to test new shield generators for the ship," I retorted, not even looking at the Krogan as I gathered the electrical cables that I'd need out of their own storage. Not enough to warrant taking the full crate, and I can just loop it around my shoulder. Once it was gathered, I looked back at the Krogan, gesturing at the crate. "Do you want me to keep coming back for two pieces at a time, or help me carry it down one time and not have me intrude any more?" He huffed, and stood, making his way over to the crate, effortlessly picking it up, and followed me down to the sub-level. Jack, unsurprisingly, was also there, laying on her bed, a knee in the air while she was doing something or other on her Omni-tool. She paused, hiding her discomfort, as Grunt set the crate down and left.

"Can't I have some peace and quiet?" Jack asked. Remembering what Shepard had told me, I tempered my response.

"Sorry, Jack, but the Collector's overload damaged the Normandy's power systems. If I don't repair and replace what needs it, critical systems could fail when we need them. And we'll all die. Jack was silent a moment.

"Fair enough."

I decided to start with the capacitors, setting the cables down on the table and opening the crate to retrieve the pieces of hardware, and getting to work replacing the fried ones. "Where's your lackeys?"

"My _engineers_ ," I emphasized, "Are getting parts to build and test some new shield generator tech I'm developing."

"For bodies or the ship?"

"The ship. At least for now. Maybe this technology can be modified later to work for individuals, but the only way I can see it working now, is if you carried a large backpack or vest with the oscillating shield generators. It would be heavy. Maybe a Krogan, or a strong biotic. Or maybe a powered exo-suit," I explained.

"Hm," Jack responded, appearing uninterested now. I continued working in silence. "So. How long you and Shepard been boning?"

"Been… what?" I stopped fastening the replacement capacitor, staring at Jack, confused.

"Fucking. Sex. 'Making love.' Penis. In. Vagina." she explained, annoyed. I just stared, wide eyed, and a bit shocked. And blushing.

"W-what?! No! No, no, no! We haven't… done that." Jack raised a brow.

"Well it's pretty fucking obvious you two are having a thing."

"We-" I stopped, and took a breath. "We do… have a thing, yes. But we haven't done… any of that."

"Shame," Jack shrugged. "Why are you so afraid to talk about it anyway?"

"I'm not afraid. It's just… very awkward."

"Why?" I sighed at Jack's question, composing myself.

"Think about our suits, Jack. Our immune systems. Even with other Quarians in the most sterile of clean rooms, that… act is the largest act of trust my people have because of the risk for infection. It's incredibly intimate and personal."

"So, figure you probably think I'm a whore or some shit?" Admittedly, my first, immediate impressions of her, particularly after that… event in the med-bay, but I tempered it by knowing Humans don't have the same risks of the suit, so things are different for them. Still, it seemed a bit… excessive. I thought for my answer.

"While I can't say I understand desiring so many… partners, I do understand things are different for Humans than my people. Even if I didn't have to worry about the suit, I don't exactly see myself doing the same."

"Hmph."

* * *

 **Lia'Vael nar Shellen**

"Collector neural tissue deep scan number seventeen complete. Results?" The professor asked.

"The test results align with the previous sixteen scans, Professor. Evidence of element zero pockets prevalent in biotics without the evidence of any abnormal bubbling of the pockets in the non-natural biotic species. Neural pathways strangely linear and more efficient than observed naturally in sapients of today, yet far more simplistic. If modified as you suspect, it's difficult to tell whether it was the Protheans or Reapers who were responsible."

"Potential of being a low caste or mandatory procedure for common soldier. Likelihood still low considering other modifications. Go on," Mordin answered.

"DNA from the neural tissue concurs with EDI's analysis and comparison. However, levels of variance and deviance in the DNA are far lower than is normal between members of the same species. Not unlike identical twins, but with slightly more variance. Less than biological twins, more than identical twins. Perhaps these samples are all from the same family unit in the Collector's breeding, or perhaps Reaper modifications have altered the DNA to be as efficient as possible and near identical. Comparing these samples with those found in Prothean colonies, the Collector samples all show massive levels of mutation and/or modification in the same exact alleles across the board. In samples of Collector cerebral cortexes, genetic sequences we theorize to influence forms of critical thinking and independent thought are largely missing."

"Suspect theories to then be accurate. Thank you, Lia. Good work. Go take a break, get lunch. Will continue scans and simulations in meantime. Please return with water and nutrient bar."

"Of course, Professor. Thank you," I nodded, taking my leave to deck 3. No one joined me on the elevator and I took a deep breath. It's tiring work, with the professor. Still, he's well aware my own metabolism isn't that of a Salarian, and accommodates me. It's just that the work is long. Now this is no complaint. I'm learning much, and I never imagined I'd be doing work so important as this. The elevator came to a stop and I entered the mess.

Mess Sergeant Gardner was serving the human crew members, while sat were both some of the general crew, the pilot, Joker, Kelly Chambers, and three members of the ground team. I believe they are Jacob, Kasumi, and Zaeed. I made my way to the refrigerator to retrieve one of the containers of sterile dextro food that, considering the three Quarians aboard are mostly running on different shifts, Gardner has prepared some 'cold meals' in advance that can be reheated. I selected a sandwich with some meat and vegetables. I activated it's reheat process and brought it to the mess table, taking the only remaining seat at the corner, beside Kelly Chambers, and in front of Joker.

"Hello, Lia," Kelly greeted with a wide, almost unsettling smile.

"H-hello…"

"Kelly, you're scaring her with that smile of yours," Kasumi remarked.

"I see Mordin let you out of his cave," Joker remarked. I just looked at him with confusion as my meal finished re-heating.

"I'm sorry?" Joker rolled his eyes with a smirk. "Yep. Helluva lot like Tali at first."

"Why'd Shepard take her on at first anyway?" Zaeed asked, his voice gruff, a hint of aggression, but his body language suggested he wasn't actively aggressive currently.

"I mean, I was on the ship when it happened, but I heard all about it," Joker began.

"So tell us," Jacob added, far more calmly than the mercenary beside him. Some of the general crew were starting to listen in as well as I just connected a tube to the container to my helmet, and listened in.

"So it was right after Eden Prime, we had gone to the Citadel under the orders of, at the time, Captain David Anderson. Shepard was his XO. Anderson, Shepard, and Udina testified to the Council against Saren for being behind Eden Prime."

"And how'd they know already?" Jacob asked.

"Some lucky and lazy dock worker was hiding and both saw and heard Saren show up behind his Spectre buddy Nihlus, and blow his brains out from behind. He passed that along to Shepard. So the Council just wasn't buying it, so Anderson sent Shepard to investigate. They followed some leads, met Garrus protecting a doc owning a free clinic from some thugs. Garrus was the guy running the Saren investigation but didn't have any access to his files. Garrus had leads about a Quarian with evidence that went to a gangster called Fist that, the Quarian believed, was still working for the Shadow Broker, but had betrayed him for Saren. Garrus also knew that Wrex was on the Citadel with a hit on Fist, and so we picked him up."

"Yeah, I remember Fist. Always tried to be the big man, but was always the little prick. Tried to cheat me out of a bounty once till I broke his nose in," Zaeed added.

"Maybe that's how he got his name," Joker chuckled. "Anyways, as you probably suspected, since Fist was working for Saren, and this Quarian had information implicating Saren, the arrangement for protection wasn't quite going to go through. So, Shepard took Kaidan, Ashley, Garrus, and Wrex, and stormed Chora's Den, the strip joint he owned, and plowed through his goons. Found Fist in his office, got answers, and Wrex just blew the fucker's head in. The information they got, was that the Quarian was having the meeting at any moment and would just get killed at it. They rushed to a nearby alley way, coming up behind her as her arm was creepily being rubbed by the Turian thug. She slapped it away, some Salarians pulled out their weapons as Shep and the others came in, she did a dive roll behind a crate, tossing a grenade in the process. They took out the Salarians, but the little Quarian woman unloaded her full shotgun in the Turian's corpse, cursing at him, then trained her weapons on Shep and crew, warning him. Didn't matter he and his guys were clearly better trained, armored, whatever, she held her ground," Joker recounted fondly.

"So to start with she had balls, huh? I figured she was more like the other two bucketheads," Zaeed stated rudely, and gestured his head towards me. I turned a glare at him in response. He chuckled.

"You don't have to be a grizzled veteran to stand up for yourself or know how to fight," Kasumi retorted.

"True. You could just be an idiot to stand up for yourself against a Krogan," Zaeed laughed.

"I'll give you that," Kasumi allowed herself a smirk. I finished my meal and got a sterilized bottle of water for myself, and another for Mordin, as well as the nutrient bar. I wonder where Kenn is. I'd have liked to spend my lunch talking to him.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Just one more thing to say, because I suspect there's a small handful of you somewhere among my readers. But if you think Tali's segment and talk with Jack hinted at her getting a bit... wild as her immune system improves? Yeah, no, and I'm dissapointed in you. I'd never write Tali as turning into a cock gobbler that talks like a pornstar, and the biggest reason why is because in no way, shape, or form is that ever her. And honestly the fics that do that to her turn me off more than much else.**


	38. Ok

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Alright, finals are done but I do still have work for the summer. I want to increase the upload schedule to what it was previously, the once every week, but give me another cycle to test the waters and see how work decides to schedule me. If it's light enough, well...**

 **Commander John Shepard**

After dropping Tali off at the Normandy, I made my way to the embassies on the Presidium to see David. The journey by skycar didn't take that long to the Presidium ring, then just going along to the Human embassies, parking in one of the built-in garages, and to the embassy proper. The receptionist outside of David's office recognized me, gave a grin, and let me through without hassle. David was at his desk working, typing along. He looked up, smiled, and stood. I returned the smile and gave my old friend a hug.

"Good to see you, John. How goes your mission?" he asked.

"I've a bit to tell you. Move to the lounge, get a drink?" David nodded in response and we entered the lounge, the butler, Elliot, manning the bar, polishing a wine glass.

"Bourbon?" David glanced at me.

"Sounds good."

"Right away, sirs," the older Englishman stated, grabbing a fine bottle as David and I took a seat on one of the couches. Elliot made his way over with the bottle and two glasses, poured, and returned to the bar.

"So the last time we talked, you had just been inside the vault of the now deceased Donovan Hock. How'd that happen?"

"A favor and contingency of the recruitment for Kasumi Goto. Bit of a Master Thief. Her partner and lover were killed by Hock and his Graybox stolen to get at the information inside. The plan was just to get into the vault during a party and get his Graybox back. It went loud after getting in the vault and we had to shoot our way out, killing Hock in the process."

"I see. I see. Did you enjoy the role of Mission Impossible?" David smirked.

"I have to admit, I kinda did," I chuckled.

"So, what else has happened?"

"We went to Illium for a pair of recruitments, and also met up with Liara while we were there. Even paid for premium docking for us."

"Really? What's she been up to?"

"After she got her inheritance, she started up an information brokerage on Illium. Primarily because she found herself with a bone to pick with the Shadow Broker. She's tracking him down." David gave a whistle of surprise.

"Well that's ambitious."

"Putting it lightly. As for the recruitments, we got ourselves the Drell Assassin Thane Krios, free of charge, I might add. He finds our mission compelling, and as he's got Kepral's Syndrome, he's not concerned with death. He's a very interesting man," I added. David nodded silently, having heard of the Drell affliction. "Second, an Asari Justicar, Samara. I'd bet Tevos would recognize the name if you ever dropped it. An extremely powerful biotic, absolutely no doubt. She's hunting down some sort of serial killer, but is working with us while Tali picks up the trail from some information we found for her."

"If you want, I can put in a query for C-sec."

"Appreciated, but my money's on her running off to Terminus," I shrugged. David nodded. "On Illium, we had a little bit of rest, Tali and I went and had a dinner date, Eclipse crashed the party. We got out fine, but Tali got knocked out with a crack visor, left her bedridden for a while."

"I'd hate to be any of those mercs," David remarked.

"Yeah, so would I. Still, two of em managed to survive and get thrown in custody. And Tali being bedridden gave her a chance to be innovative, and find a way to contribute to the ship despite just being in the med-bay." David raised a brow in curiosity. "She's been developing a new method of shield tech, for ship's primarily. Instead of just having the barrier just there, static, the new version would be oscillating. Like the shield projectors spin around like a gyroscope, just rapidly and intentionally so that the shield reforms every… I don't know, nano-second. The point being that it will slap aside projectiles rather than just taking the full force of the blow."

"Yes, yes, I can see how that would work. I don't know the numbers, but," David trailed off.

"Yeah. She's a fucking genius," I chuckled. "Following that was the little heist, and after that was TIM telling us a Collector ship was dead in space. We investigated, suspecting a trap, TIM knowing but not telling us," I grumbled. "But we made it out alive with some valuable data." David had kept listening, his brow furrowing after I mentioned TIM withholding information, but knew he and I shared the same thoughts. He gave a little gesture for me to share the information. "First, that they can use the Omega-4 thanks to a special IFF. Second, EDI confirmed this from their DNA. The Collectors are some kind of advanced form of Husk made from Protheans." David's eyes widened.

"So. Knowingly or not… that's what Saren's goal was." He took a long sip of his bourbon, finishing it. "That's something to think about. You said you had something to ask of me?"

"Right. One of the crew, Jack, I remember telling you about her. I've learned more about her past. Cerberus had her since she was… very, very young. They ran all kinds of experiments on her, keeping her like a prisoner, as well as dozens of other children."

"Despicable," David muttered.

"Jack knows where that facility is, now. Was. It's abandoned, on Pragia, and she wants to blow it all to hell." David was silent a moment and took a breath.

"Give me two days."

* * *

 **Garrus Vakarian**

Spirits… my head. I grunted in pain as I struggled to open my eyes. Thankfully, this room was still darkened. I was in a bed I didn't recognize, and… clothes are tossed about? I was then aware of another's quiet breathing, and my eyes dropped to the sleeping form beside me in the bed. A naked Turian woman to go with my naked self. Right. Elements of last night were coming back to me. Not much, though. I really wanted to get absolutely hammered. I went to… some bar, started drinking, and… yeah, at some point, I shared some drinks with her. What was her name? A… Ana? No, Anlea. Right. Soldier in the hierarchy. Took some losses in some raid on a pirate hideout. There for the same reasons I was. Thing was just that I wasn't planning for any hookups, she was. I took a deep breath. Would have been nice if I could remember a bit more of the evening. Still, suppose I should get back to the Normandy.

I shifted my legs off of the bed, standing to start gathering my clothes when my companion started to stir, turning around in her bed facing me.

"Fun night. I think. You remember much?" she asked, still clearly on the tired side.

"People don't drink like I was if they're trying to remember," I remarked.

"True," she managed a chuckle. Anlea removed the blankets from her body, very aware of what she was doing, and what she was leaving visible. Running her hand along her thigh to keep my attention. "One more for the road? That we'll actually remember?"

How could I say no to that?

 **Commander John Shepard**

It was the morning after I spoke with Anderson, Garrus wasn't back on the ship yet, so I'll probably want to check in on him sooner or later. Engineering was either finishing building or testing the experimental shield tech. Hm, probably as good a time as any to get a certain little something started. I got dressed for the day and headed down to CIC, and from there, to Mordin's lab. The Professor was working at his Terminal while Lia appeared to be copying results from an experiment with the Seeker Drone on her data pad.

"Shepard." Mordin greeted without even looking up. His greeting took Lia by surprise and she immediately stood straight, facing me.

"Good morning, Commander." I gave a warm, reassuring grin.

"Please, Lia, relax. No need for such formalities with me. And you can just call me Shepard."

"Thank you, Comman-Shepard," she stopped herself.

"Mordin, can I speak with you? In private?" I asked.

"Of course." Mordin gave a nod to Lia as she left the room through the main CIC entrance.

"Not medical matter. Would see Chakwas otherwise. How can I help?" I opened my mouth to speak, and felt a surge of embarrassment like I was a schoolboy again. I closed my eyes and shook my head.

"So, you've probably figured out by now that Tali and I are… together, right?"

"Yes. Curious. Human-Quarian relationships unusual. Not unheard of, but unusual. Curiously, in short span of thirty years, Humans already achieve the second largest numbers of interspecies relationships as a race. The largest of course, belongs to Asari." I couldn't help but laugh.

"That is not at all surprising."

"Surprising for Salarians. Most curious trait about species that does not reproduce regardless of species. Regardless, here." Mordin typed at his Omni-tool and a transfer immediately started on my own. "Guides for Dextro-Levo relationships. Positions comfortable for both Quarians and Humans. Lists of soaps and cleaning agents for both you and Tali'Zorah to make use of. Enjoy." Well, now I looked like a Tomato.

"Woah, woah, Mordin. Slow down. She and I… aren't _there_ yet."

"I see. What then do you need?" Mordin asked without skipping a beat.

"I was hoping to see if you could actually turn my quarters into a clean room. Use the ante-chamber as the actual decon unit. And I'd also like to see if you could do that without Tali knowing," I explained.

"Ah, yes. Smart. I shall go and procure the materials and leave current lab work to Lia. Depending on quality of seals already present, should finish by end of day.

"That's appreciated, Mordin. Thanks," I nodded. I followed the Salarian out of his lab, and as I went back to the elevator, Mordin gave Lia her to do list. Let's see how the engineers are doing. I pressed the proper key, waited a moment, stepped out, and turned towards Engineering proper.

"Aaand… module ten hooked up and powered," Donnelly called out as the whirring sound in engineering was louder than usual. A cycling mechanical whir, and ten devices hooked up and steadied on some tables set up in the center of engineering, all of them being monitored and flashing with kinetic barriers as the generating side came face up. Some of which appeared darker, flickering when they appeared, others, brighter and steadier. Of those, most were slower, but one was noticeably faster. Donnelly had heard the door open and was the first of the engineers to see me. "Oh, 'ello Shepard," the Scotsman greeted. Daniels leaned around the corner with a grin and wave, and I made my way around from the right side of engineering to look down the center. Tali was at the far end, reading a terminal as she gave me a sideways glance and a wave, her eyes appearing to narrow in one of her smiles, and Kenn was standing straight as Lia had been.

"Receiving data from all ten modules. Should have conclusive results in an hour or two," Tali stated.

"Good timing for you then, Shepard, we've got more free time with our shore leave. Skyllian-5, anyone?" Donnelly asked.

"Been a while. Might need a refresher, but I'm game," I shrugged. I resisted the urge to smirk. Oh, I still remember very well. I'm just looking to throw off Kenneth.

"Shep's game, I'm game," Gabriella added.

"I know I haven't played it before. Have you, Kenn?" Tali asked.

"I-I haven't. Sorry."

"Ach, don't worry about it, lass and laddie. We can teach ya, and go easy."

"Putting any credits on this?" I asked.

"Friendly wagers. Nothing more," Kenneth shrugged.

"Yeah, I totally believe that," Gabby remarked.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

I'd say easy money, but Ken was not bad at all. I still came out on top, and his face about halfway through as he realized he was not able to read me that well. And despite Kenn and Tali being new to the game, they both had the advantage of us only being able to see their eyes. Now, I had the benefit of being able to read Tali by her eyes and the occasional other body gestures while making educated guesses with Kenn. Gabby, I should add, wasn't bad at the bluff either, but she was much less distressed about losing money than Ken was, considering how confident the Scot was. Said she was just happy to see him taken down a peg. I was also happy with that, but a bit more so with the additional hundred credits.

"Whether it's a game or combat if you're ever underestimated…" Tali chuckled as she and I went to the lounge to talk a little bit. My request and I messaged ahead to make sure Kasumi would be alright with us having a bit of privacy. We got up to the crew quarters without hassle and took seats at the bar. Though neither of us got drinks. "You wanted to talk?"

"Yeah, I, uh… I did." My mouth went dry and I shifted in my seat. "I wanted to talk about the night we had our… talk, and the morning after." Well, I just made it sound like we did more than just fall asleep on one another. Tali went rigid and I heard her take a deep breath.

"Oh! Oh. W-what about it?" she asked.

"Well… I think I mentioned that for Human men… having a beautiful woman," Tali went rigid again at the description, staring at me wide-eyed. "Fall asleep on them is a bit of a dream come true. And I was wondering… maybe you'd want to do that again. Maybe… maybe even move up to my quarters?" Tali was silent, then snapped back to reality, closing her eyes and giving her head a shake. A part of me thought that was her saying no, but I forced the understanding that she was just clearing her head.

"I'm-I'm sorry, what did you call me?" she asked quietly. I'll admit I blushed, but I got the sense she was blushing just a bit harder.

"Well, er, beautiful."

"B-but you haven't even seen me," she murmured.

"I don't think I really need to know that," I shrugged. Wait. "Not that I can't wait to see under the mask," I hastily reassured. "Just… I'm confident that I'll be more than happy with whatever I find. Assuming it's not Garrus," I joked to break the tension, and it managed to work, and she allowed the chuckle. "So…"

'So… what? Oh, you asked something, didn't you?" she asked, embarrassed. I couldn't help but chuckle, but I made sure it didn't last long or become a laugh.

"Did you just get lost in a trance after hearing that?"

"It's not exactly something I hear every day!" she retorted, flustered.

"Then I'm going to change that, beautiful," I teased, and she froze again, before punching me on the shoulder and folding her arms over her chest. I just put my arm around her shoulders, and she released a deep breath, leaning into me. "I asked if you'd be willing to spend more nights in my quarters. Just to sleep," I reassured. "Like we did that night. Though probably on the bed, still on one another. It was… very nice. Would you… want to move in? With me?" I asked. Tali was silent again, thinking.

"W-well… it was… nice. Very nice. Um…" she was thinking again; I imagine her mouth open as she searched for the words. "Would I be… intruding? On anything?"

"Not at all."

She took a deep breath.

"Ok."


	39. Reinstatement

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Alright guys, here's the deal. On one hand, work isn't being too heavy on me, at least regarding the amount of days I have to go to work at the moment. However, the schedule will NOT be speeding up at least… until late July? August? The reason being that my family is in the process of moving. After approximately 16 years, my family are finally moving out of the north and back to our home, birthplace, of Florida. Bout goddamn time. So. Next chap is obviously Pragia, that should give it some length, and, idk. Average length of chaps might be on the lower end until we settle in. Now, before I send ya off I just want to reply to two of the most recent reviews real quick. KOTOR, sorry the lengths have been on the lower end, I don't have as much time as I'd like right now, and yeah, the addition of a clean room is just a relatively easy (and obvious) thing to add on a starship. They are all compartmentalized in case of a hull breach, so they're all airtight and sealed naturally. To that guest, I honestly have never watched Smallville, (I prefer Marvel stuff) Kal's name is obviously the canon one, and Lana'Shalgur was the name of his love interest in Calinstel's series. Now, I've written her to act considerably differently than Calinstel's version, and I'm pretty sure I haven't mentioned her clan name yet, but I just like the name of Lana. Anyways, hope you enjoy despite the length. (Like the girlfriend I don't have)**

 **Garrus Vakarian**

Well that was a fun morning. I'm glad I'll be able to remember that round. Or two. But we both have responsibilities for the day and had to go our separate ways, though I'm not about to complain about the offer for our separate ways to… converge again, so to speak. No strings attached.

Currently, I was making my way to one of the taxi lots by the apartment complex. Considering it wasn't the only one in the area and that there were both commercial and office complexes nearby, the lot was busy at this time of day. It may not have been when all the office jobs were starting, but anyone going for an early lunch, or getting to work to start a lunch shift keeps it busy enough, both people going in and out. Hm, word choice. To and from would do better right now, I think. As I hailed one of the outgoing taxis, my Omni-tool pinged with a message, but I'd just check after the cab was on its way. The cabbie was a greasy, older looking human with bushy hair above his lip. We shared a short, standard greeting, and I gave him the destination of the docking bay on Zakera ward we were docked on. Naturally, he wouldn't take me to the ship itself, that's not the way the transit works. Not like it matters, though.

I pulled up my Omni-tool and checked what the ping was. A message from Shepard.

 _Just checking in. Doing alright, buddy?_ I took a deep breath. I'd never admit it to anyone, but it feels good to have people check in on you like that. Especially if they're not blood related, so there's not the assumption of the 'familial obligation' excuse. To answer the question? The full truth I'll give myself is that, not surprisingly, I am physically feeling pretty good. Mentally? Still exhausted and emotionally drained, but good luck ever finding a Turian who shows that to anyone other than their mate. Still, I'm… stable enough, I think that word fits enough, to go back to the Normandy, and I wouldn't turn down the chance to shoot something if need be either. I typed my response.

 _Between strong drinks and feminine company, I'm doing better. I still don't want to talk about it yet, but I'm better, and heading back now._ I sent my message and quietly waited as the cab made its journey, looking out across the Citadel and the Widow nebula in it's strange, purple and pale beauty with swarms of ships and sky cars going about their business. I got a response a few minutes later.

 _Good to hear, and glad to see you found yourself some fun. I'd be there to greet you at the ship, but Hackett wants me to come to see him over at Anderson's office and I've already left. Unless there's any reasons given to hang around, we're probably heading out sometime tomorrow. Plan for that as you want._

If I'm being completely honest? I'd prefer for us to just leave today. A few more minutes passed, the skycar arrived and landed, I paid, I left, I returned to the ship as my body decided to remind me that I hadn't had breakfast with a slight cramping sensation. Well... I did have breakfast of a kind… Alright, let's put those thoughts aside for some other time, and go eat some food in the meantime.

I made my way down to the mess, Zaeed and Grunt, as well as other various crew, including Chambers, were having meals. Zaeed was the first to see me, giving a silent, knowing glance with his good eye and nodding. No expression, just the nod. Grunt didn't even need to turn his head to look, but barely paid any attention to my arrival, just getting back to his meal. It wasn't lost on me that both seats beside him were empty. Unfortunately for me, Gardner was in the process of cleaning everything used to cook between the meals of the day, so I wouldn't be getting the hot meal I'd have been hoping for. Water and a nutrient bar. Or two. I made my way back to the table to eat and drink, taking a seat between one of the crewmen and Zaeed. That redhead, Kelly Chambers, was continuously trying to catch my eye with smiles.

"I missed you at the mess last night, Garrus. Where were you?" Guess she hadn't heard. I glanced up with my left eye. My right noticed Zaeed was looking at the woman himself now, a very slight shake of his head to the side. I'll admit some surprise at the gesture. As for the woman… The way she's speaking to me reminds me of Dr. Michel. Humans are strange.

"Drinking myself into a stupor then finding myself in the bed of a very… nice woman," I answered without paying her much mind. If she was trying to do what I think she might, it should put a stop to it. Zaeed chuckled beside me.

"Why'd she let you have her bed?" The… mentally young Krogan asked, completely oblivious. As for Chambers, her face reddened, just slightly, while a few of the other crew at the table gave slight smirks, but Kelly kept her own smile.

"Oh? What was she?" I'm only more convinced that she's trying to find herself in the same… positions that Anlea was in. I raised a lone browplate at the Human woman as I took a bite of one of my nutrient bars. I was silent a moment as I just looked up at her with one eye and a raised browplate.

"Turian."

"Oi. Chambers. Shuddup and let the man eat," Zaeed grumbled. Appearing a bit embarrassed, and some of the human crew giving her looks to go about the same. Thank the spirits… Just as I finished my 'meal' and my water, the engineering crew had apparently come up to the deck as Tali, Kenn, and Gabby entered the mess, and I think I saw Donnelly moving quickly towards the lounge and bar.

"Hold around a moment! We got one helluvan announcement!" Gabby beamed, shaking Tali gently by the shoulder. I watched curiously, then Donnelly returned from the lounge with a large green and corked bottle. "Ladies, Gents, our Head engineer has a little something to announce," she stepped to the side, leaving Tali in the center.

"As of now, we have just completed tests on new prototype shield generators for the Normandy. Cyclonic Barrier technology, which exponentially improves the effectiveness of a ship's shields by rapidly cycling the ship's shields every fraction of a second in order to deflect projectiles rather than absorb the full blow. The tests have passed, and we have the design needed," she explained. Well, that'll help against the Collectors.

"And what she's forgetting to mention is that she came up with the idea, and the designs, all on her own. She has _invented_ the next generation of shield tech," Daniels added. Impressive, Tali. Very impressive. Admittedly, not at all surprising for her, but impressive. Everyone at the mess tables, except Grunt, who probably either wasn't paying attention or didn't understand the tech talk and immediately stopped caring, clapped their hands for the embarrassed Engineer.

"Ay, Gardner. Get some glasses for the lot, wouldja?" Donnelly asked in his strange, almost comical accent as he forced the cork off the bottle which shot out like a large organic bullet, foamed alcohol spilling onto the floor as Gardner stepped up his pace to catch it in glasses

"Is it normal in human celebrations to make a mess on the floor with alcohol?" Tali asked, looking down at the wasted drink.

"Normally not intentionally, lass," Donnelly joked. "But popping a champagne bottle? Yeah, that's normal."

"Unfortunately," I barely heard Gardner mutter under his breath. "Thanks for upping our odds to see this through alive," he added louder. I just gave Tali a silent, approving nod when her gaze came back this way, then stood.

"Well if we're celebrating, I'm going to get a drink that won't leave me sick. Want me to get you a bourbon, Tali?" I asked with a knowing glance.

"Ancestors no," she groaned at the memory. I just chuckled and made my way to the lounge.

"Oh, I gotta hear about this," Gabby remarked.

 **Commander John Shepard**

I returned to the Normandy after the meeting in a bit of a daze. There's two people I need to talk to about this.

"EDI," I asked as I stepped aboard the ship, the CIC not nearly as populated as normal, as would be expected since we're in dock and a drive core only generating power, not anything else. "Where's Garrus and Tali?"

"They are both located within the mess hall," the AI answered.

"Thanks," I answered, and took the elevator down. When the door opened, there was the very noticeable sound of human crew, including a scot, talking and laughing. Curious. When I turned the corner, I saw a fair amount of the crew, including Garrus, Tali, Grunt, and Zaeed standing or sitting and enjoying some drinks, an empty champagne bottle resting at the kitchen. Color me intrigued. As my presence quickly became noticed the more intoxicated members present raised their drinks with a drunken greeting.

"Ayyyyyyyy, Shepuuuurd. Can I have some of me creds back?" Donnelly slurred.

"Fair and square," I shrugged with a smirk. "What's this about?"

"It worked, Shepard. We've got a successful prototype that passed all the tests," Tali answered, one of the few fully sober. I couldn't help but grin. She did it. She's a genius inventor and will find herself worshipped by shield technicians and naval engineers for years and years to come.

"Knew you could do it," I grinned. "Can you get me numbers for resources needed and the price to fully replace the ship's current shields?"

"Of course."

"Great. In the meantime, can I talk to you and Garrus?"

"I've got a buzz, but I'm good to listen," Garrus shrugged, standing to his feet while Tali gave a nod, also standing. I just led them to the lounge, where Kasumi was still absent. At least, so it seemed. Still, I didn't see any flickering or wavy air.

"How did it go with Admiral Hackett?" Tali asked.

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you all about," I responded. "The Alliance does obviously want to have themselves a Spectre, and apparently losing their first Spectre after less than a year was a bit embarrassing. Plus, they remember the Blitz and the reputation it gave me. What was a tricky matter was the here and now. Considering it's been two years, both those who do and don't believe the resurrection are skeptical about whether or not I am under Cerberus' control. Willingly or otherwise.

Technically, working with Cerberus in any capacity could get me a court-martial, and apparently, there was more than one debate among the Alliance's military leadership plus Prime Minister Shastri as to whether or not my status as a Spectre, which is thankfully upheld, makes any difference. But in the end…" I pulled a small box out of my pocket and opened it, revealing the bars of a Commander in the Alliance Navy. "I'm reinstated. With plenty of thanks to Hackett, Anderson, and even Shastri," I smiled. A real smile. Removing a sense of anxiety about whether or not they'd have me back. I've given a lot to the Alliance, and they've given a lot to me. And I'll keep giving at least until the Reapers are through.

"Congratulations, Shepard. Any strings attached?" Garrus asked as Tali gave me a hug.

"A few. And they're temporary, unsurprisingly. I'm reinstated officially, but I won't be getting my salary until after we're done with Cerberus. Though they'll be sending missions our way from time to time, and they'll give me half a month's pay per mission. So, not unlike a merc in practice. I asked Hackett if the Alliance might be willing to help with upgrades to the ship, ideally to keep things like yours," I gestured at Garrus, "and the shields, out of Cerb's hands. Hackett said he'll pass it along, but that it might depend on the price of the upgrades. I get the sense that if they can make use of your designs, that'll help a lot," I explained. In fact, they've already given us a mission to get done. I plan to go after we do Jack's favor, but, uh… it's _the_ crash site. The SR-1. They want us to deliver and place a small memorial statue, look for bodies or… any means of identifying the MIA and giving the families closure." The others were silent, Tali, gone ridgid.

"They hadn't sent a recovery team yet?" Garrus asked.

"Terminus hotspot," I shrugged. "Same cluster as Omega." Garrus nodded, understanding. "The statue will be coming in later today, then Anderson's got an explosive that Jack needs for her favor. I'll be bringing both of you along, naturally. But Jack wants Miranda to join in and see. If you want to not go, for some reason or other, just say the word.

"I'll use my visor and stream a feed of the mission to the ship. Let everyone see what had happened," Garrus offered.

"Sounds good."

 **Commander John Shepard**

Hours had passed, and the day had gone by without more events. Kasumi had appeared briefly to congratulate Tali on her achievement before disappearing again, and the only sign of Jack today was her appearing on the Crew deck and going straight to Chakwas, then leaving, probably to get… cleaned again. Samara and Thane had both exited the observation deck together during lunch and observed, but did not join in on the merriment. Though they did ask, and give thanks to the Quarian. Eventually, the day came to a close, the statue having arrived around dinner time, and the yearning for sleep began.

Tali stretched and yawned in her seat, her glowing eyes closing for a moment as she resettled in her seat. Most of the crew, Donnelly included, had passed out from enjoying their drinks, and a few others, like Garrus, had cut themselves off to go off and sleep before they got to the bad hangover stage. Tali and I were the last at the mess table, a few random crew members just talking and having a few last drinks elsewhere.

"Tired?" I asked.

"A bit," Tali leaned back in her chair.

"I could go with some sleep now myself. You uh…" I trailed off awkwardly.

"Hmm? Oh!" Tali fidgeted in her seat now, before stopping herself, and taking a deep breath, eyes closed, and pausing. Her eyes opened again, and she looked up at me. I couldn't see, but I got the sense she was managing a smile. "Ok." I gave her a smile back, and we both stood, making our way to the elevator. Fortunately, I had gotten a message from Mordin earlier that I snuck a read of.

 _Quarters are fully sealed and sterilizing agents installed for dispersal in quarters and antechamber. Currently out to purchase decontamination unit for installation in both rooms and localized laundry system that will fully sterilize all fabrics while remaining intact._

Good. There shouldn't be any giveaways for her. We just go sleep, go about the morning as things are planned, and by the next time… I can surprise her with that. While making it clear she only has to… make any use of it fully at her discretion. Tali and I made our way up to my quarters, through the antechamber, and into my quarters. Her three fingers of her right hand entwined with the five of my left.

"You can go ahead and make yourself comfortable. I'll just be a moment." I grabbed a tank-top and sweatpants from my closet as Tali, shifting awkwardly, tried to figure out what to do with herself, and took my clothes into the bathroom, closing the door. I made use of it, gave my teeth a brush, and changed into the clothes, and exited. Tali was sitting on the bed, taking some of the fabric in her hands and studying it. I got the sense she was imagining how it felt. She obviously heard the door open, though, and her eyes went right to me, then my bare arms. I may or may not have flexed for her. She was on the left side, currently, so I walked over to the right side, and got myself situated under the blanket, sitting up with my back on the pillow.

"Oh," Tali murmured, then slowly went and worked on doing the same as I just gave her a warm, reassuring grin. She pulled her blankets to her waist as I worked my way to actually lie down on my back, pulling the blanket up to my chest as she copied me. I turned my head over to my side, listening to her nervous breathing before she turned her head, her eyes gazing into mine. Her breathing began to ease, and I grabbed her hand again, smiling. Tali turned to her side and lay her right arm over my chest and her hand on my side, squeezing me gently on my side. My right arm went under her side pressed against the bed and around her, pressing her up against me, and her head went to rest at the crook of my neck, and so my head rested against the top of hers, and her right leg hooked over my own. Sleep came quickly.

It was heaven.


	40. Catharsis

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey, sorry guys, process of moving is a busy one, and while it's currently 3AM on a Tuesday for me, I've been working through the day on the chapter with every moment of free time I've had. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

The journey to the Nubian expanse wasn't exactly the shortest of our recent trips, but not the longest either. It was along the outer rim of the galaxy but still in the Traverse, if at the border. Took about two days in transit, and in a fit of nerves, I had left the recently installed decon unit offline. We should give the very recent and pleasant sleeping arrangement some time to settle in before that little reveal. There had been no complaints at all by the time we had arrived by Pragia, fortunately. And as the time came for the crew to set out, Jack was ready and geared up before even myself. While Miranda I had specifically selected for the team, per Jack's request, Zaeed and Samara had both requested to join as well. I remembered Samara's request to attempt mentorship of her. Perhaps this is the start of that. And I know Zaeed has a soft spot for Jack, not in a creepy way, at least. Not like she'd really let that happen; I think. Finally, Garrus, so he could stream the wreckage of the facility and Jack's memories, and Grunt just in case there was heavy lifting to be done. True, the biotics here might be able to handle it fine, but ideally maybe without cleaning out the pantry when we get back to the ship.

As for the explosive that David had lent us, he had managed to secure a low-yield mining nuke. The kind generally used to crack open medium sized asteroids for a quick mining run. And no modern nukes use fission anymore, so no chance of further mutating Pragia's already mutant plant life. Plus, the bomb can just be strapped to Grunt's back. And so long as it's not primed, it's not going to detonate. It just isn't. So far, Miranda hadn't asked about what she was doing for the squad here. Or what it was. Or why we had what was clearly an explosives device strapped to the back of our Krogan. She was the only one in the dark at all. And that was just because I didn't care to explain for her. Not yet, at any rate.

Anyways, Joker gave us the all clear that we were in orbit and by the facility, so the shuttle, piloted by myself, with Jack acting as a guide, at her insistence, was in the cockpit with me, and Zaeed had squeezed in of his own volition as the shuttle began its descent.

"I remember the place all too well," Jack murmured, breaking the silence. "The landing pad had to be on top of the shithole, or the plants will just grow over it."

"Yeah, I've been here before. Civilization here is fuck all. Smugglers and other shitheads use it as a hideout from time to time. Few stay long, though," Zaeed shrugged. "Plant life is fucking wild. I swear I saw some man-eating plant when I took a shit in the jungle once."

I'm inclined to believe him.

"Commander," EDI began. "I am detecting thermal signatures everywhere within the facility and along its perimeter, but not at the landing pad."

"Ain't surprising. Look at this fucking planet," Zaeed grumbled.

"Could be squatters, though," I reminded. "Or just local wildlife." We were close now, and the facility was coming into view. As barely visible as it might be, there was still a couple dozen or so feet showing over the canopy of the jungle. This side of the planet was in its night cycle, and in addition, it was raining, on the heavier side, which wasn't exactly surprising.

"It was a mistake coming back here," Jack murmured.

"Oi," Zaeed put a hand on her shoulder. Her head shot in his direction, an instinctively aggressive movement, but she relaxed. "You blew up a prison ship with your fucking mind. We can turn an abandoned lab to ash and atoms." He spoke surprisingly softly. Jack took a breath.

"Yeah. Yeah, ok. Let's just get this over with." I held our course and landed the shuttle atop the facility. Structurally, the place was still intact, though the plant-life was in the process still of engulfing it. And fortunately, there still seems to be a path inside.

"Where do you want the bomb?" I asked as the lot of us disembarked.

"My cell," Jack answered, taking a spot beside me.

"Poetic," I remarked. "Lead the way." I gave Garrus a glance and he replied with a nod, and a quick point to his visor. As I shared the glance with Garrus, Jack taking position in front of the group, Zaeed staying beside me now as I was following right behind her, Miranda started her questions.

"Your cell?"

"Yeah, Cheerleader. Welcome to the little house of horrors Cerberus used to make me," Jack didn't turn to answer.

"And we're here to blow up an abandoned Cerberus facility?" Miranda continued. "Is this an attempt to get under my skin?"

"Something like that. I want to see if you can justify this shit." I heard Miranda sigh, but she stayed quiet for now. The path led us inside the facility, there wasn't even a door in the doorway. Scavenged or destroyed during Jack's escape? The room doesn't exactly qualify as trashed, but there is wear and tear, some of the flooring had been upturned, crates and supplies had been left behind, Cerberus logos on the walls, while still present, the paint had long began to peel and fade, the same goes for some painted words that say 'Processing.' Some of the walls, however, were a kind of glass. More than bulletproof to have stayed intact here for so long, that's obvious. On the outer walls, plant life was growing over, only a little light managing to creep through. Interior windows were scratched, but intact and uncovered. It appeared to look down into a hallway, mostly closed doors with what were probably nameplates once to the side of them.

"Don't remember this place," Jack murmured. "Processing, huh? Must have been where they brought the kids. Remember them saying that they came in big crates, packed together. Starving, bruised, but alive. Mostly." I looked to the side. There were two large crates, like shipping containers waiting, unopened. My mouth went dry, fearing the worst.

"Crates like that?" I pointed at them. Jack looked over and shrugged. "Probably."

"Shit…" I murmured, debating. Yeah, we need to see. "Grunt, help me open this." The Krogan huffed and followed me over. I looked for a control panel, but it was busted. Drained of power long ago. Same went for the other. I started looking for a secondary, sealed panel that should reveal the batteries it uses. I should be able to transfer enough power to get them to open, not unlike the overload program. It wasn't on the front of the crate; my guess is that it would be at the side that's facing the other crate. Same should go for the other. Cerberus does like its own protocols, and that would probably mean following that of leaving the batteries accessible without needing heavy equipment to pull these out. Lo and behold, I was right. And why use tools to open the latches with how rusted they might be when I have a Krogan? I gave the panel a knock, and Grunt slammed his fists into the metal beside the panel, successfully leaving a dent that let him grab the underside of said panel and yanked it out, exposing the battery. He repeated the process with the adjacent crate while I gave some charge back to the battery.

"Panel's lighting up. It's working," Garrus informed.

"Get it open for me?" I asked. Garrus didn't respond, but I heard his footsteps and began to power up the other battery. I heard metal creak and groan as it struggled against wear and tear, opening outward.

"Fucking hell…" Zaeed murmured. Damn it. I glanced over at the rest. Miranda was frozen in place; her left foot having taken a step back. I couldn't read her expression through her helmet, but considering her body language? Shock. Samara was standing stoic as ever, but staring in. Jack hadn't appeared to react at all. The second crate had been powered now, but before opening it, I had to look into them. The metal keeping the shipping crates sealed even by a vacuum hadn't been pierced to break the seal, and they were all sterilized. While the bacteria in their own bodies had been decomposing them, inside was around twenty, twenty-five small, mummified corpses. My stomach churned, threatening to turn itself inside out. I gulped, took a deep breath, and approached the other crate, using the now powered panel to open it. A small body slumped out and onto the floor, more skeleton than mummy. What little flesh remained showed clear signs of cannibalism. The other children driven desperate by hunger and thirst. Of course, it didn't save them. I threw off my helmet, just dropping it somewhere on the floor, moved outside, and emptied my stomach over the railing. Grasping it with all my might, knowing my knuckles had gone white, but not seeing it.

When it felt like the last of it had come up, I released the rail. My grip, probably thanks to the enhancements, had actually dented in the railing. I need to shoot something. I returned into the facility, picking my helmet up off the floor and putting it back on. Miranda and Zaeed had similar reactions and were still recovering.

"Justify that," I stated plainly, coldly, as I passed by Miranda. "Get us away from this," I continued, speaking to Jack now. She just started walking out of 'processing,' through a half open doorway. It was a security room. Decrepit scanners, a screen lining the wall cracked along the middle with a chair on its side in front of it. Probably where someone watched security monitors. One of the security consoles was actually still online. And flickering. Some power remains, if it can't get around very well. It apparently was stuck on playback. Like whoever was using it was listening to an audio file.

"The Illusive Man is starting to ask questions," a man's voice stated. "When he gets results, he won't care what we did. But if we knew…" the file's static then garbled out a few other words. Corrupted. The message played back from the start. Using my pistol, I shot the console, the message stopping. Closest I could get to shooting a motherfucker responsible.

"Sounds like the facility went rogue," Miranda let out a breath. Jack scoffed.

"Yeah, you'd like to think that, wouldn't you? Didn't say what they were hiding." The next door had been blown open from the other side. "I remember this. And the next place," she began. I took a peek through. It was a large room that trees had broken through the flooring to take root, growing up to the ceiling, and one through one of the now shattered windows. For what remained in its place, it seemed like some kind of obstacle course. "Yeah. I fought here, at the end of my escape. Saw sunlight through the cracks in the ceiling. I saw some guards run into the security room. Blew open the doors, killed them, blasted a crate through the window that tree went through. One of those guards died from the door. The other was half dead, between me and freedom. I remember he was begging for his life." Obviously, she didn't grant it. We continued through, passing through the obstacle course. There were catwalks above, likely for instructors and guards to monitor them. Those had broken down. Then, there was a roar. It wasn't exactly unfamiliar. It was that of a Varren. And they aren't locals. Those of us with shotguns, myself, Garrus, Grunt, and Zaeed quickly swapped to them, already recognizing the noise as up ahead, a pack of about five of the reptiles scrambled along the corner, hungry, skinny. Shotguns made quick work of them. The biotics didn't even have to make use of their abilities.

"Looked hungry. Been here a while, I guess. Think they were strays from some smugglers or other?" Garrus asked.

"Maybe. Generally, if people have them, they like to keep them around. They ain't cheap," Zaeed answered. We turned the corner the Varren had been around. There were concrete blockers that had once formed a circle, three of those closest to us had been overturned. The inside of this ring was pock-marked with dried blood. Long dried blood. Just staining the ground and never cleaned.

"The ring. They staged fights here. Pit me against the other kids. Saw em swap credits all the time. I loved it. Only time they ever let me out of my cell." I looked back at the bloodstains.

"And how… far did they go?"

"I was a kid filled with drugs," Jack shrugged. "Got a shock if I ever hesitated. Narcotics when I attacked," Jack stretched. "Still get the warm feelings when I fight."

"Christ," I muttered. "Why the hell would they do that?"

"Dunno. Maybe it's how they had fun here," Jack shrugged. "I never understood shit here."

"How often?" Zaeed asked.

"Hell if I know. I was in a cell for my whole damned memory. Sometimes they took me out and made me fight. Filled me with drugs. Other shit. Time gets funny in a cell. Go figure. Can we keep moving?" I let her lead the way, clenching my fist in my hand as we moved on. There was another set of blown open doors. To the right, a window outside, partially cracked, a hole in the ceiling, and some crates piled along the wall. Strange. Another scanner. Like it was a security checkpoint. A console with power. It flickered to life and it went to playback the last entry. The hologram of a guard, Cerberus armor, but long outdated. The kind you'd see as surplus that D tier merc gangs might be able to use today.

"Security Officer Zemkl, Teltin facility. The subjects are out of their cells! They're tearing the place up! Subject Zero is going to get loose. I need permission to terminate! Repeat: permission to terminate!" He got a response.

"All subjects beside Zero are expendable. Keep her alive!"

"Understood. I'll begin the-" Jack stepped beside me and turned off the console.

"Bullshit, that's not what happened. I broke out when my guards disappeared. I started that riot," she countered angrily.

"Seems like there were some things you didn't see," I responded.

"Shepard, the other kids attacked me. The guards attacked me. Hell the automated systems attacked me. How else should I interpret that?" she questioned, staring me down, then continuing. Down a stairwell. And at the midpoint, a pair of Varren corpses. Still red blood pooled around them. Fresh kills. "The fuck? Who the fuck would be here?"

"Weapons ready. Watch for scavs. Give them a chance to move on," I ordered. "Jack, I'm taking point. Just direct us to your old cell." I took position ahead of her while she stayed close behind. We made our way to the base of the stairwell and to the right, a cracked open window and another blown open door. There was a tree about ten feet ahead of it growing up to the roof, breaking through the floor and some crates that it had pushed up and aside. In the center of the room, Vorcha picking through scrap. A Krogan in red armor acting as an overseer. The symbol of the blood pack adorned his pauldron.

"Blood pack scavengers. Somehow, I doubt they're going to move on. Biotics, get a detonation on the Krogan. We'll clean up the rest.

"I shall prime him," Samara spoke for the first time this mission. Stepping forward and past me, towards the center portion of this room, glowing a deep blue. With a flick of her wrist, a ball of biotic energy launched out and towards the Krogan, as Jack followed up with a run, and with a punch to the air, a biotic shockwave before any of the Vorcha or the Krogan could make sense of what was going on. The biotics detonated, and the rest of us turned the corner and opened fire. The Krogan was just gone, as were two of the Vorcha I had seen earlier. Gunfire mowed down the rest, and gave us a chance to take a closer look at the room. The center had tables, some turned over, some moved about. They were bloodstained. And along the walls of the whole room, not the smaller, thinner dividing walls, there were slots. Some open, some closed. All of the opened ones were empty, save for slabs that had slid out. A morgue. And a sizeable one. The bodies more than likely taken by the blood pack, as rotten as they might be, as Vorcha and Varren food.

"A lot of people had to be dying to warrant a morgue this size," Garrus murmured.

"Bullshit. I got the worst of it, and I survived," Jack growled. Storming ahead. I was about to order her to slow down, but the still intact door had power. And was locked. That only frustrated her further. I stepped beside her to open the door myself, giving her a glance.

"Steady." I got the door open as she took a deep breath. Another catwalk over… I'd just assume this to be some sort of… transition hall.

"It's weird being back here. I feel like… I'm pissed off. I'm a dangerous bitch, then just a little girl again," Jack murmured. "Shit… can we just plant that damn bomb?" I gave no answer. We just kept moving, down another stairwell. Keeping our eyes and ears open for more Blood Pack. Two Vorcha attempted an ambush from a balcony, but a pair of bullets found their brains, as their rounds hit only shields. The rest of the stairwell just went to a hallway, doors alongside each wall. The doors were all just absent. They were like prison cells. A bunk bed in each, a toilet, and a sink. All about twelve feet across. At most.

"They kept kids here? It's like a fuckin prison. Juvey had better rooms then this!" Zaeed exclaimed. At the end of the hallway, there was another door we passed through. It was a catwalk over… what appeared to be the equivalent to the yard, once upon a time. Though there were no objects left to help with that theory. Just a tree bursting through the ground and to the ceiling. At the far end, right by where the catwalk passed by, a completely black window.

"Wait, wait… It's a two-way mirror? My cell is right on the other side. I could see all the kids out here." She ran ahead, trying to see inside, squinting, most likely.

"I screamed at them for hours and hours. They always ignored me."

"You mistook their ignorance of your pleas for indifference," Samara added softly. Jack was quiet. She just shook her head, and we moved on. The catwalk led to a pair of rooms, the peeled and old paint at the entryway just read "labs."

"Weird. I must have come through here when I broke out. But I don't remember it," Jack spoke. We checked left first, as it wasn't along the path. Most of the room had been overturned, emptied. But in the back, there was a chair with a light over it. "This is a bad place," she murmured. Memories must have been coming back. The chair had metal clamps for the wrists, at the forehead, and the legs. Keeping whoever would be in completely in place, still. Nothing more to go off of. Just a chill down the spine. To the right lab, which still showed another door to go through, the lab had an identical chair to the other, but this had a console. A voice played. Older, human.

"Entry 1054, Teltin facility. The latest iteration of PergNim went poorly. Subjects One, Four, and Six died. No biotic change among the survivors. We lowered core temperatures of surviving subjects, but no biotically beneficial reactions occurred. As a side effect, all subjects died. So we'll not try that on Zero. I hope our supply of biotic potential subjects holds up. We are going through them fast," he remarked, absolutely no hint of regret. Subjects, he calls them. They're goddamn kids.

"No, they weren't experimenting on the other kids for _my_ safety!"

"It ain't on ya. It's on them," Zaeed reassured, his voice low.

"You don't get it!" she shot back, staring at the old merc. "I survived this place because I was the strongest. That's who I am!"

"And so, you continue along your path, and grow ever stronger from your hardships. Not consumed by them, but coming past them," Samara added. I focused back at the console, plenty was corrupted, but I got another file. The most recent. The same voice as the earlier log.

"It's all fallen to pieces. The subjects are rampaging, and Zero is loose. We're shutting Teltin down. What a disaster… We'll infiltrate and piggyback onto the Alliance's Ascension program. Hopefully that will-who are? Zero, wait!" There was the sound of a screaming little girl, and the cry of pain from the man as static enveloped the log, and it came to an end. These sons of bitches got into Ascension?! That's a conversation I need to have with Anderson after this.

"Shepard, they started up somewhere else? They're doing this all over again?" Jack asked, surprisingly concerned.

"The Ascension program is nothing like Teltin. They don't torture kids. But if any of these motherfuckers escaped and snuck in, I'll send word to the Alliance as soon as we're back on the ship." Jack put a hand to her forehead.

"A lot of this… isn't how I remember it," Jack sighed, starting to pace anxiously.

"This place was nothing short of a traumatic experience. It's not uncommon for the mind to cope by just forgetting things," I explained. She shook her head. "I was dumb. I keep my eyes open now, and I always shoot first." She sighed again. "We're almost at my cell." So, we kept on going. Through the next door, and Blood pack were there, weapons raised, but not firing yet. Some Vorcha with Flamethrowers, I count… ten. And three Krogan. One of whom was wearing newer armor, with red lights at the shoulder and chest, the armor itself a silver color. While all the others had their eyes and weapons trained on us, the Krogan only had the one, his hand at his equivalent of an ear. A commlink.

"Aresh, it's Kureck," he paused for a response. "The intruders are here. You want them dead, talk creds. You promised a lot of salvage, but this is a fucking waste." The Krogan growled, now taking a glance at us. "Fine, we'll put em down, then-" Immediately, I used the overload program to detonate the fuel tanks that the Flamer Vorcha were wearing. Garrus and Miranda followed suit. There were three total with the flamers, and an additional five bathed in flame, screaming and writhing as the flames ate away at their flesh. Fire and their regeneration don't mix well.

"Still think the pay's worth it?" I called out.

"Aresh? You're on your fucking own."

"Glad you saw some sense. Now, get the hell out of here. This place is going to be a crater soon," I warned. The Krogan grumbled under his breath.

"Pack up boys." I gave a mock salute and we passed them by. One of the two surviving Vorcha started complaining, wanting fresh meat. Kureck just shot him straight through the head. Jack just led us to her cell. Through a door, to a hallway with a spattered dent and bloodstain on the wall.

"Yeah, my first kill without being drugged up. Guard was terrified," she remarked, taking off her helmet and just dropping it to the ground. We just stepped right into her cell. Bigger than any of the others. A bed, a desk, bookshelf, toilet, shower, and sink. No sign of anyone yet.

"We know you're here." I called out. A man, young, with ragged clothing stood from behind some crates that had been placed in the room. Hands in the air.

"Who the fuck are you?" Jack asked, staring at him.

"Aresh. And you're breaking into my home." He studied Jack's face for a moment. "Subject Zero. So many years have passed, and I thought I was the only survivor." He stepped closer to Jack, who's biotics glowed and flared.

"My name is Jack," she growled. "How the fuck do you know me?"

"We all knew your face," he shrugged. "They tortured us so their experiments wouldn't kill you. You were the question. I'm still looking for the answer."

"So, both of you were drawn back here," I remarked.

"I tried to forget this. But a place like Teltin doesn't forget you. It follows you." He couldn't take his eyes off of Jack. "I hired the mercs almost a solar year ago. We're rebuilding. Piece by piece. I'm going to find out what they knew. How to unlock true biotic potential in humans. I'm restarting Teltin." This man is broken. Desperate for some answer to his suffering. "It'll be beautiful."

"What… the fuck are you thinking?!" Jack exclaimed. "I want a fucking hole in the ground. He wants to justify this by using it?!"

"You'd commit the same monstrosities onto new children?" I asked.

"Some were bought from poor families, or kidnapped from Colonies. Most ended up here the way I did. Batarian pirates. Fucking hell was the head of this facility named Halsey? "They did such horrible things to us… They must have had good reasons."

"There's no reason good enough!" Jack screamed. "You lived it!"

"How did you escape?" Garrus asked.

"Everyone attacked when they were taking us to the lab. Would have put us down, but then Jack got loose. When I came to, it was all over. Everyone was dead. Guard, scientist, kid. You were gone.

"I stopped it, all of it. Maybe… Maybe the others did have it bad, but you're batshit!"

"Everything we went through, all the pain, the suffering… it must have been worth something!" Aresh argued.

"So what do we do with you, Aresh? This place is going to become a crater."

"Just leave me here. This is where I belong," Aresh murmured.

"I've a better idea," Jack growled. She knocked Aresh to the ground with his biotics, and pulled a pistol, aiming at his skull. She was breathing. Heavily. Her teeth gritted.

"Jack, he's trapped in the past. You need to move on from it. Or you'll live through it all every moment of every day for the rest of your life. Just… move on," I stated quietly. She looked up.

"He's right. I'm not getting those twenty years back. And I had a person on my list. You have… a thing. You try and kill that, and you'll never see the end," Zaeed murmured.

"He wants to restart this place… He needs to die!"

"He's broken, Jack. He'd never be able to restart it. Let it go," I encouraged gently. "Don't let your past control you." Jack's breathing quickened, almost like hyperventilating.

"FUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCKKKK" She screamed, and emptied the clip. But not into Aresh. But the ceiling. "Go! Get the fuck out of here!" He just broke into a panicked run. "He's not worth chasing. None of it is," she murmured. Zaeed stepped over.

"You did the right thing," Zaeed put his hand on her shoulder. She looked around.

"This room was my childhood. Give me a minute to look around."

"Take all the time you want." She started with the desk.

"I used it for everything. Like a best friend. I'd crawl under it to cry. I was pathetic… The bed?" she nodded in its direction. "Sometimes I dream I'm back in it being tortured. Used to tie sheets around my wrists and rip them off. I want to stop coming back here…" Jack took another breath. "Alright. Fuck it. We're blowing this place to hell."

"About time," Grunt grumbled, and unstrapped the bomb, setting it down. I went ahead and set it up properly. It's armed. And I've got the detonator. Sealed and blocked and at my belt.

"Let's make this quick." Without wasting any time at all, we hurried back to the shuttle, and made our way up back towards the Normandy in a holding pattern over the planet. When we reached the minimum safe distance, I activated a viewscreen on the console showing the rearview, and handed Jack the detonator. She stared at it for a moment. Flicked open the plastic casing blocking the trigger. Then closed it. Flicked it open again, and closed. She repeated the process a few times.

Her thumb pressed down on the button.


	41. Visiting Your Own Grave

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys! Been a while, eh? Well, now we're moved in with all of our furniture and everything to our new house back home in Florida, and things are returning to a sense of normalcy. My writing included. Hiatus: Over. In case some of you guys didn't catch it, I did manage to upload a one-shot I was commissioned for related to Into the Great Unknown (My Andromeda story.) The one-shot is post Meridian, and still focused on the Tempest crew, but Scott and Vetra in particular, of course. Go give it a read! Head to my profile, and you'll see the one-shots. Anyways, I know this chapter is a bit on the short side, but I think you'll enjoy the content and what a few things might mean for later on. Also, hope for, but don't expect, another chapter next week instead of the week after. I'm gonna give it a shot but I don't want to make promises unless I know I can keep them. You can rest easy knowing that either way, there will be a chapter that following week anyways. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Miranda Lawson**

That facility. That damned facility. And the children. God, the children in those crates. In the first, I stared at a pair that had just clung to one another. Arms wrapped around one another in a corner. Their deaths wouldn't have been instant. It's likely that one died before the other. Yet there they stayed. Clinging on. How scared they must have been. Even before they arrived. But the facility went rogue. They had to have been. The Illusive Man was asking questions they didn't want to answer.

 _You know the Illusive Man. You know how he manages his cells. Even if he didn't know about some things going on, such as the fight pit, he would have known the layout of the facility like the back of his hand. He would have known of the cells the children were kept in. He'd know of the morgue. A morgue that size is never for the occasional accident. It's when death is frequent. And Processing? The crates? Not only would he know that the children were arriving in crates, but he'd know how often, and how many. That's not information he'd allow any cell to withhold._

I shook my head and sent a message to the Illusive Man. A request to speak with him.

 _It doesn't stop there. You know that. For a Morgue that size, he'd have to know why. He'd have to know of their experiments._

No, they went farther than the Illusive Man intended. I'm sure. I can see him wanting the results of perfecting Human biotics, but there would be other, effective ways than effectively slaughtering children.

 _Risks like that never stopped him before. And no method other than the extreme would make fast progress. And that's what he cares about._

But this is different! The lives of children! Not credits or supplies!

 _There you go, saying it's different again. The phrase of denial. All he sees are numbers._

The message I sent was answered by a call from the Illusive Man, routed through the QEC. I accepted, eager to end this debate with myself.

"Operative Lawson."

"Sir. I have questions." I answered giving the conversation all my focus and professionalism.

"About?" He paused.

"The Teltin Facility on Pragia. It's-"

"Where Jack came from, yes. I'm aware Shepard used your clearance to retrieve those files. And that Shepard has now destroyed the facility. Am I correct in assuming your questions are about the conditions?"

"Yes sir," I answered.

"Lawson, understand that the Teltin facility began operations in 2165, and Jack escaped in 2172. I hold a tighter leash on my operations now, and I observe them more closely. They took liberties I disapproved of. I deemed the facility had gone rogue, so I shut down what was left. The surviving scientists did not get reassigned onto the Ascension project, but were disposed of. Any further questions?"

"No sir."

"Good." The Illusive Man dropped the call and I breathed a sigh of relief. They went rogue.

 _You gullible fool._

 **Commander John Shepard**

Sleep didn't come as easy as it has been, sharing my bed with Tali, but I still managed. Combine what we saw at Teltin with the fact we're going to what I can consider my own grave today? Makes things difficult. At least Garrus streaming the facility to the ship worked out in our favor. Of those that had remained loyal before, they were more or less split down the middle between those who were "on my side," so to speak, and those like Miranda, clinging to the belief that it was a rogue facility.

As for Alchera, we'd be arriving in a few hours. In the meantime, I think I should check on Jack. So, I went down to find her in her hidey hole. When I did find myself down there, I saw Zaeed lounging in a chair he had brought down and was doing something or other on his Omni-tool while Jack was simply lying on her cot, staring up at the ceiling. With an actual shirt on. Zaeed glanced up, having heard my footsteps, and nodded.

"Shepard," he greeted. Jack sat up, having not noticed me herself.

"Hey. I owe you one."

"No, no you don't. I was happy to help." Jack was quiet a moment, just looking at me. Trying to get a read, I think. She sighed, and laid back down. "You understand. At least a little. It's different, though, Akuze. Your old man. Having shit like that follow you around. How it marks you. And you just let it all go?"

"Easier said than done," I shrugged. "Sometimes, I grab on again without realizing. Have to try and let go all over again. Keep holding on, and you keep getting thrashed about."

"Boy scout's right," Zaeed remarked.

"Maybe. Making that hellhole a crater doesn't help as much as I thought. But I'm not going to carry it around like Aresh. Still kinda wanna kill everyone I see. No offense," she sat up. Zaeed chuckled.

"Sounds like a bloody start."

"Agreed," I allowed a smirk.

"Yeah, yeah. Fuck both of you," she laughed in spite of herself.

"So, Zaeed, what were you doing down here?" I asked.

"Keeping her company. Never even spoke a word till you got down 'ere. Figured she'd do well to have someone around. Hasn't shooed me away yet."

 **Commander John Shepard**

It was like a chill running down my spine, but constant. That's what it looked like as I looked down at Alchera from the cockpit. It was surreal. Knowing that somewhere out here, two years ago, I was suffocating and plummeting to the surface below amongst the ruins of my first ship. Joker was abnormally quiet himself. I know he blames himself, that he should have just gone to the escape pods. But I could have just have easily left him there. I could have made one last attempt to get in the pod with him instead of jettisoning it from outside. Maybe I'd have just taken him with me by doing that. Maybe I'd have lived. Who knows?

Garrus and Tali were standing beside me, and I had my arm on Tali's shoulder, squeezing it. She was uneasy. I wasn't sure how Garrus was handling this. I know my death hit him hard too, but he also hardly batted an eye at my return, apparently handling it better than most anyone else. So far, at least. Damn…

"Joker," I broke the silence. "How about you suit up and come down with us? She was your ship, your home too," I suggested.

"Yeah. I uh… I think I should." Joker took a deep breath. "I'll put the Normandy in a stable orbit. Walding can handle any little adjustments that might happen. I'll meet you down in the hangar."

"Don't need any help?" I asked.

"That's what the cane is for. Gravity down there is weaker, at least. Should be able to walk normally," Joker shrugged.

"Got it, bud. We'll wait." We silently made our way down to the cargo hold, there just wasn't anything to say. The memorial statue the Alliance wanted us to place somewhere had already been loaded. As for when we get down there? We walk around, we remember, and we mourn. Then, Alliance Dog tags are made to last and withstand. While not invincible, they do come with black box like short range locator beacons. You won't pick them up unless you're already in the area, but they can last a helluva long time. We have body bags for any intact enough to be removed and brought home, but for those that can't, we can at least take the tags. Sometimes it's better to bring back just that than scattered pieces.

A few moments later, the elevator doors to the cargo bay opened, and out walked Joker, putting the majority of his weight on the cane as he walked. His environment suit was one of the looser variants. It still has all the same protections, but it's easier to put on for people with physical disabilities Once he stepped in, I closed the shuttle doors, the cargo bay doors opened, and off we went, down to the surface of Alchera. Before too long, we could start to see the wreckage site. While most of the debris is scattered across several miles, the bulk of the first Normandy is concentrated in a relatively small area. The interior portions and most things that were crucial to her shape. I felt nauseous. How couldn't I? The moment we touched down I leaned forward, head in my hands and breathed deeply.

"Secure your suits, I warned, waiting until the others had confirmed they were sealed before venting the crew hold, and joining them as we stepped out onto the frigid surface of Alchera. A few meters in front of the door was a plate of metal with _Normandy_ painted in white across it. Some of the wreckage, one of which was once one of the Normandy's engines, towered into the sky. And as the atmosphere of Alchera was thin, there virtually is nothing but stars in the sky above. And it was completely, eerily silent. No sound as our boots crunched the snow and ice, no wind howling by, nothing at all. Like an open mausoleum.

"Is it strange that I'm glad it's quiet?" Joker asked, no hint of humor. "It just… feels right, that it is."

"No, no I agree, Joker," Tali spoke. "This is a graveyard. For my people, that means silent contemplation, reflection, and respect for our ancestors."

"What doesn't feel right is that it's taken the Alliance two years to send a clean-up crew," Garrus murmured. "I know this is next door to Omega, but, still… Never mind. We're not here for that." I didn't respond. I couldn't. I just looked around. I wonder where my body was when it was found. Behind the shuttle was part of the ship's hull, the armor plates around the bridge, in fact. Covered with the old paint job, scarred and melted and broken as it was, and the name of the ship. It's what we'd see whenever we returned to the ship in dock. Our little welcome home sign.

"Is that… Shepard? Over here," Joker pointed out, his eyes having wandered. He led us right, relative to the piece of hull. I could see some part of the ship that had crashed down, but I wasn't sure what it was yet. Ah… the mess hall. There was a body, crushed by some debris. Unrecognizable, and certainly not recoverable. Silently, I retrieved the dog tags, unclipping them from around the body's neck. I'll read the names later. We kept moving, looking around. Even here, I found something that brought a smile, as small as it might be, to my face.

The Mako. And looking more or less intact.

"Spirits," Garrus allowed a chuckle. "Of course it survived." The Alliance had offered to just replace the Mako after the events on the Citadel. But we kept ours. True, we had to replace the entire engine and drive core, all the wheels, the suspension, propulsion, and half the hardware of the weapons system, but it was ours. And Garrus didn't have to start over on his Calibrating. Perhaps from eyes less connected to the tragedy, and without understanding the times we had in the Mako, it might look comical how we were just standing there a few minutes looking at it.

"We're taking it, aren't we?" Joker asked. Garrus and I responded simultaneously.

"Hell yes."

"Keelah," Tali shook her head.

"But, uh, we should continue. We'll take care of this later."

"I think I saw the bridge on our way here. Can we go there next?" Joker continued.

"Course." We followed the man to where he spent most of his time on the Normandy. It was strange to see him walking. Let alone without a cane. Even without his regular hunch. He still took it slow, but it was almost possible to forget his Vrolik's. The bridge corridor came into view, the consoles along the sides long dead and broken, and the pilot's seat at the end. There was one corpse with its arm blown off in one of the seats along, shredded by shrapnel from whatever explosion caused their death. And in the cockpit, there was another body, this one was marginally more recognizable, but charred. Feminine.

"One of the ensigns. Her name was Talitha. Killed by the first blast," Joker murmured. "Knocked her on the floor behind my seat. Now…" She had apparently been knocked into the side of the cockpit, her limbs and neck bent at unnatural angles. I think we can still bring her back to the Alliance. Joker silently shook his head, and he followed us back out of the bridge. From there, we could see CIC and the galaxy map. It was at the highest point of this little crater that the Normandy had made. CIC was the heart of the ship. I figure that's probably a good place for the monument. The others followed me to investigate. There were three bodies as well. None of them recognizable, none of them very intact. But one died clutching a data pad. I doubt it has any power left, but maybe it has some last correspondence to family that never got sent out. The least I can do is recover what I can from it. Carefully, using my Omni-tool like I did the crates on Pragia, I gave the data pad power, and transferred all surviving files onto my own to review later. I retrieved the dog tags, not sure if we'd be able to move the body, and I caught the name.

Charles Pressly. My navigator and XO. Damn. It's strange. It feels like one thing to be told someone's dead, at least, when they're not one of your loved ones, and despite knowing there was no possible way for him to be alive, it hits a lot different standing over his body. Especially in a condition like this. Jesus, if they were all in shape like this… what the hell was left of me? I wasn't inside the ship to be protected from any of the re-entry, and these bodies all still look like they were left behind in a burning building.

"Shepard!" Garrus called out. There was no alarm, but he wanted me to see whatever this was. "Over there." He pointed along a little 'path' along the side. One void of scrap and debris. There was something black, round, along a snowbank, with a little glint. My first instinct would be to write it off as scrap metal from the crash. But Garrus wouldn't point out something so inconsequential. I followed along, taking a closer look. As we got closer, it took shape. It was loosely spherical. Then I started to see the charred, burnt red paint. The barely intact N7 logo on the side. It was a helmet. My helmet. I quickened my pace and picked it up, inspecting it. A chunk of the faceplate had been broken off, and all but the upper left corner of the visor was shattered. It was cracked it several places, of course, but… fucking hell. This helmet is the reason I'm still here today, with my second go at life. It kept my head in just enough pieces for them to put me back together again. Kept my brain safe so I would still come back as myself. Yeah. This is coming back with us. Only two things left to do. Move the monument… and gather what bodies, and tags, that we can. And all the while with one, constant thought.

 _What the hell am I?_


	42. Adolescence

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys! Chapter for ya! Like last time, hope for an update next week, but expect a chapter the following week. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

We had a short rendezvous with an Alliance cruiser patrolling the Caleston rift at the border of the Traverse. We transferred over the few bodies we could recover as well as the dog tags of those we couldn't. Beyond that, they had a few Makos on board and were willing to transfer over the parts we'd need to repair our old one. The engineering team will work on it next time we're in dock. Problem is, I'm not sure just where we should go ne-

"Commander," EDI began through the intercom as I was studying the Galaxy map, considering our options. "Grunt has punched a wall within the Port Cargo Hold. Readings show that he is significantly agitated. If he continues, he may cause significant damage." Well shit. I commed some backup as I entered the elevator.

"Garrus, Zaeed, meet me outside Grunt's room. Armed. Don't follow me in unless necessary," I ordered.

"On it," Garrus answered.

"Sure. Let's try not to kill him, though. I like the bastard," Zaeed answered.

"Just a precaution, Zaeed. I'm not looking to kill him, but I'd rather have some protection in case he starts trying to pummel me and not the wall." The elevator stopped on Engineering, and Zaeed, apparently, wasn't down here as he wasn't waiting here or at Grunt's room. I waited, unable to hear what might be going on, and the elevator returned moments later with both Zaeed and Garrus. Having an early lunch, perhaps. Zaeed had his rifle, Garrus, his pistol. "EDI will let you know if he gets violent against me. He does that, you come in and make him think twice," I explained. The two nodded in understanding, and so I entered, immediately finding Grunt pacing anxiously in the middle of the room, one side to the other. There was a dent in the wall separating the cargo hold from the loading bay, now housing both the Mako, and a shuttle. He was also scratching at himself. His chin, lower neck, behind where his ears would be. I could hear his breathing, there was a clear effort that he was trying to control it, but it just stayed short and shallow, like when Wrex would prepare himself to charge in and let the blood rage take him.

"Talk to me, Grunt." He continued to pace, but he kept one of his eyes on me.

"Something…" he closed the eye, probably having closed both as he put his hand up to his plated forehead both pressing down and scratching at it. "Something is wrong. _I_ feel wrong," he explained as he clawed at his cheek, actually drawing blood. "Tense. I want, no, need to kill something, with my hands," he continued his hands clenching in front of him like he was imagining throttling something. He paced straight towards the window to the shuttle and slammed his forehead into it, cracking it. Engineering is gonna love repairing that. He growled, turned, and slammed his fist into his own forehead. "Why did I do that?! I didn't want to!" He huffed. "I'm Krogan, Shepard. I like killing things. But this… it's like it's not my choice anymore." Strangely, he was calming. Slightly, at least. "What's wrong?"

"Well," I put my hands on my hips, thinking. This isn't as bad as I thought it was. I mean, Krogan not control of his anger is of course bad, but I was afraid he had just suddenly gone off the deep end. This I think we can work with. "I'm no expert on Krogan biology. EDI, can you get a scan on him? See if he's caught some Krogan bug or… something?" Grunt looked up as we waited a moment.

"I detect no signs of disease other than the Genophage and no evidence of degradation, neural or otherwise. However, that claim may be inaccurate from a lack of Krogan subjects even remotely comparable to Grunt. Shall I send the scan results to Mordin in case he can provide additional insight?"

"Fine," Grunt huffed and began pacing again. "When we fight, Shepard, I focus. It feels normal. Good. But here, in the quiet, my blood screams and burns, my plates itch, and even you are just noise," he jabbed a finger in my direction, scratching at his plates as he spoke.

Well, I've an idea. And a nice excuse to go see an old friend.

"Tuchanka. This is probably something they're familiar with," I stated.

"They would not just let an outsider land on our home world."

"Good thing I'm not just an outsider. An old friend of mine just so happens to be leading several Krogan clans under one banner. He'll allow us." Grunt released a breath.

"Thank you, Shepard. I don't like this. Fury is my choice. My weapon. Not a sickness."

"We'll take care of it, Grunt. Just keep it under control while we make our way there, ok?"

"Yes, Shepard. I will control this." I gave Grunt a nod and took my leave of his quarters. The other two had still been waiting.

"So?" Zaeed asked.

"Having a hard time controlling his anger when we're not on an op. We're gonna pay Clan Urdnot a visit on Tuchanka, see if we can't help him out there," I explained.

"It'll be good to see Wrex again. Though, I'm not keen on the idea of having every eye on a planet imagining me as paste," Garrus remarked.

"Ah, I'll protect you." We returned to the elevator and while they got off on deck three, I instead went to my cabin to make a call. Still, I did pass it along to Joker to set course for Tuchanka. When I did arrive in my quarters, I sat down at my desk and gave Anderson a call. Unsurprisingly, it took a while to answer. A Councilor is busy, after all. Around thirty minutes of watching the fish, reading messages I had received, or just thinking about when and how I should let Tali know that this is a clean room. Eventually, he did respond.

"Shepard. Sorry, you called during a meeting."

"You're fine, Anderson. We've got business on Tuchanka, Clan Urdnot, specifically, and yes, this is more than just a house call. I know only Spectres and Council approved can even enter the system. But considering my… status at the moment, figured I should check anyways and send word to the blockade ahead of time," I explained.

"That shouldn't be a problem. Get me an ETA and I'll make sure they don't get nervous when your ship comes through the relay."

"Appreciated as always, Anderson. Joker," I keyed my Omni-tool's com and asked. "ETA to Tuchanka?"

"Three days, Commander."

"Can you get me that in hours? It's to get clearance."

"Right, the Turians patrol it. Alright, sure. From right now? Seventy-Six hours till we enter the system."

"Thanks," I turned off my tool's comm. "Got that?"

"I heard. They'll still stop you for ID, but they shouldn't give you any trouble. Wish Wrex luck for me, and that if he ever needs anything brought before the Council, I'll sponsor it," Anderson added.

"I'm sure he'll be glad to have the in. Thanks."

"See you, Shepard."

Well, now I need something to do, and Tali is in engineering. I could go talk to Thane; I hadn't done much of that. With that idea, I made my way down to the crew deck, and didn't see him in the mess, so I checked life support, where he had set up shop. Immediately I felt a wave of heat and the air felt much dryer, my lips will probably be chapped by the time I'm done here. The floor was grated, and the air purifier took up the left side of the room and there was a window to the drive core at the far end, and along the right wall, was a kind of personal little armory Thane had set up, weapons waiting to be chosen. On the left, was Thane sitting at a table, staring at the drive core with an empty plate on said table, and a cot behind him.

"Shepard," Thane greeted.

"Thane. I see you took your lunch here," I remarked.

"Indeed. While the company of your crew is not poor, I was in need of dry air."

"Kepral's acting up?" Thane nodded in response, then gestured for me to take a seat across from him.

"The doctors have given me less than a year to live. I have surpassed their expectations before, but one day, I will not."

"I… wish there was something we could do."

"The thought is appreciated but unnecessary. Though my mortality has me… dwelling."

"I know how that feels," I murmured. Thane stood and slowly approached his gun rack, hands behind his back. He glanced over at me, and I took that as my signal to stand beside him.

"I had a family once. My son still lives. His name is Kolyat. It's been many years since I've seen him." Oh. Alright, whatever he might end up saying, John, keep yourself in check. Not everyone can be like your father, and it seems he's regretful. Just hear him out first.

"Had a family?"

"I abandoned them," Thane answered quietly. Then his eyes got slightly wider as he realized how that sounded. "Not at once, nothing dramatic. I did not sneak away, or slam a door, or never return from the store. I simply… did my job. Hunting and killing across the galaxy. 'Away on business,' my wife, Irikah, would say. I was always away on business," Thane glanced down.

"And when did you last see Kolyat?"

"Ten years. He showed me some of his schoolwork and asked if we could 'dance crazy.' We did that when he was younger." Sounds like a memory he might be fonder of. If I ask him to explain that, maybe I can get a better idea about him. "

"Dance what?" I asked, though I heard him just fine.

"It's-" Thane froze in place. "I check my extranet contacts, expecting an update on my next target. The console plays music. Old. Unfashionable. Bad. Kolyat jumps into the room. 'Hi father!' Runs around me in circles. I scoop him up. Toss him into the air, catch him. He shrieks, laughs. 'Spin me!' The console beeps, I put him down, click the message. 'Father,' he pleads. Tugs my sleeve. 'I need to read this,' I say. I don't look at him," The man looks down again in what appears to be remorse. It reminds me a bit of Tali's father. And I don't have a high opinion of him.

"And you mention this now…?" I trailed off so he could add his answer.

"When my wife departed from her body, I… attended to that issue. I left Kolyat in the care of his aunts and uncles. That was the last I saw or spoke with him."

"Instead of taking care of him yourself?" I asked, letting some accusation get past me. Thane continued, unfazed.

"It was not the correct choice. My body is blessed with the skills to take life, and the Hanar honed them under the compact. I have few others. That I not only grew to Irikah but possessed something for her to grow to love me in the first place was a miracle. That was not a life I desired for Kolyat and I hoped he would find his own way. If he hated me, I could accept it, as he would not have shared the path of sin. But I have always kept track of him. Recently, I lost track of him among the regular means. Though my more professional contacts I traced him. Kolyat has become… disconnected, and does what his body wills."

"Disconnected?"

"Drell believe that the body is not our true self. The soul is. Body and soul work as one in a whole person."

"Ah, right, the ID and Ego is what humans call it in psychology," I nodded understanding.

"When the soul is weakened by despair or fear, when the body is ill or injured, the individual is disconnected. No longer whole. For Kolyat, something happened that should not have. He knows where I've been, what I've done. Years ago, I prepared a package for Kolyat. A relic of my ill-spent life. I had bankers store it and arrange for delivery upon my death. This package would have explained to Kolyat the truth about me that his mother and I kept from him. As well as my actions after her passing. I don't know how or why, but he has received the package early. Kolyat is now on the Citadel, I don't know why, or what he's doing. Perhaps he needed time away from the family he was in the care of. Or something else."

"Do you want to go see him?" Thane was quiet a moment.

"I don't know if that would harm or help him now. I shall continue to watch. If after a few days he returns home, my concern will be lifted. If he goes down a darker path, I will waste no time in saving him from himself."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

"Unidentified vessel, this is the Dreadnaught THS Colossus. Deactivate your engines, identify yourselves and state your intent in the Krogan demilitarized zone. Failure to comply will result in your ship being fired upon with the intent to kill." We were contacted five seconds after coming through the relay, and through the cockpit we could already see Turian ships of the blockade. They were far off, but still in visual range. The dreadnaught, I believe, was the furthest off but still visible, if barely. Closer were frigates and Corvettes ready to pursue. They don't want anything getting by. And all the ships were Turian. That's hardly surprising.

"So much for no hassle, right?" Joker remarked. He keyed the console, killing the engines as demanded, and responded to the Colossus. "THS Colossus, this is SSV Normandy SR-2. Commanding Officer is Commander John Shepard, Council Spectre. Requesting clearance into the Krogan DMZ with intent to send an away team to Clan Urdnot on Tuchankan surface."

"THS Colossus to SSV Normandy SR-2. Your identity is confirmed. Rear Admiral Varcus wants to remind you that while you were told to expect no hassle, this is standard procedure. Further, be advised; while you will be allowed passage, we will not ensure your safe passage onto Tuchanka itself. We will provide coordinates and communications channels to request landing, but nothing more. THS Colossus, out."

"Ah, how pleasant," Joker muttered, reactivating the engines, and moving us along to Tuchanka itself. We waited until we were in orbit over Clan Urdnot before contacting the channel that the Turians had given us. "Let's see if they make it any easier than the Turians," Joker chuckled to himself. He entered the comm channel and started.

"Clan Urdnot, this is the SSV Normandy SR-2 requesting clearance to land a shuttle." With some static, there was a slightly garbled, but understandable response.

"The hell is the Alliance sending a ship here for? And why should we let you?" Plenty less formal.

"I'll let you take this, Shepard," Joker waved me up, not sure how to answer the second question, I'd think."

"We're here to speak with Urdnot Wrex. Tell him the name of our ship, and that an old friend has come back from Alchera. He'll clear us to land himself," I answered. The Krogan on the other end huffed.

"Fine. Stay there."

"I figure you can probably go ahead and wait in the shuttle. We both know he'll give you the green light. Tell him I said hi," Joker remarked.

"What, you don't want to see him yourself?" I smirked.

"Yeah, I've read the warnings. I'm not far off from being a vegetable myself. Last thing I need is to be eaten by one." Alright, that got a laugh out of me.

"I'll pass that along," I chuckled, heading down to the shuttle bay. Garrus and Tali would of course be heading down with Grunt and I. Zaeed and Jack expressed interest, and, well, I decided I'd allow it on the condition that they don't get into any fights. At all. Kasumi thought it might be fun to tag along and meet an old friend of ours. I figure it couldn't hurt as she can just cloak. A few minutes later as we waited, we heard Joker's voice on the comms.

"Commander, you're good to go. They more specific coordinates for a kind of bunker entrance that they'll let you through. He also said," Joker deepened his voice. "The clan leader demands," Joker coughed. "Alright, won't do that voice anymore. Clan leader demands that you bring the Turian, Quarian, Asari, and Human with you. You think he knows it's you?"

"Ah I think he's got an idea," I smirked.

"I'm glad he's so eager to see us," Tali remarked.

"It's more reassuring than anything for me," Garrus added. "I'd rather not get turned into decorations." With our clearance, we took off towards the surface. The engineering crew would probably use this time to fix Grunt's window and get to work on the Mako. True, they could have had someone fix the window earlier in the trip, but with Grunt still agitated? Best to play it safe. Once we entered the atmosphere through the upper layer of the clouds, there was just nothing but ruin and dust. Even with that shroud slowly repairing the planet's atmosphere, there's still a strong nuclear winter across the planet. The bones of ancient Krogan cities. I wonder how many of these ruins are from before they nuked themselves, and which others are from the Rebellions. We came upon the bunker entrance, like an old missile silo that was left open and descended down. Whaddaya know, in all likelihood, it was an old missile silo. Finally, we landed, a handful of Krogan waiting as guards. Now, all of us were of course armed and armored. Armored so that we would be sure we're sealed from the radioactive environment, though Grunt didn't need to be fully sealed, and armed, because this is Tuchanka. But regardless, we're not looking for a fight. I joined the others and opened the shuttle doors. In addition to the Squad of Krogan, two of them were holding back growling and leashed Varren. The Krogan were all wearing armor in shades of red comparable to Wrex's armor back on the first Normandy. The one in the center had a kind of light display on his left chest. Their weapons were trained on us, and the one likely in charge studied us.

"You pull those triggers, and Wrex will slaughter you himself," I warned. Not worried at all, really.

"Yeah. He wants to see you. Though I don't have a fucking clue why. Least of all a Turian," he glared at Garrus. Then he stared down Grunt. "And keep your rutting Pyjak on a short leash. Either get him the rite soon, or put him down." Well, they obviously know what this is then. And the rite? Is this just Krogan coming of age? Huh, in the grand scheme of things, if that's the case, it's just like regular teenage delinquency on Earth.

"Can we go now?" I asked, my tone annoyed. I get the sense Wrex wanted less guns on us than there were. The Krogan glared at me, then stepped aside. The Varren calmed, but still growled as we passed. Through a door, down a flight of stairs, around a corner and down a tight hallway. It looks like the entrance we used was an old missile silo that they then connected to… an old sewer network? Parking garage? Just a general underground? Through another door, and up a ramp of rubble, a Pyjak scampering away to the center of the complex. It was large, spacious, and the ground covered in rubble. This certainly seems like it used to be something more akin to a parking garage, modified as best Krogan architects could to suit its current purpose. And there, being talked at y some Krogan pacing in front of him, on a throne of stone, was my old friend. Looking bored out of his mind.

"Oi, Jack and I are gonna have a look around. Let me know what the kid needs. Might be fun."

"Sure. Just, seriously, don't try to fight anyone," I ordered, and smiling, taking off my helmet and clipping it to my side, I approached the guards along the way to Wrex's throne. One of the guards approaching us held out his hand.

"Stay put, Human, and wait to be summoned. He is in talks." Wrex must have overheard, as one of his deep red eyes glanced over, and his frown immediately changed to a barely contained Krogan smile. I could hear the Krogan boring Wrex.

"You know what tradition demands. Clan Urdnot must respond. Your reforms will not go unopposed. You risk showing weakness when strength is demanded." Ignoring the Krogan, Wrex stood.

"Shepard." The pestering Krogan turned to see us himself, seemed rather insulted that our presence tore Wrex's attention from him. Wrex simply pushed past him and started approaching.

"That good enough?" I remarked to the guards, the lot of us squeezing through without much resistance. This time I could see teeth in the grin.

"Shepard!" he actually chuckled. We clasped forearms like we did when he left. "My friend." He then did the same with Garrus. "And Vakarian, you're looking even uglier than I remember. When did C-Sec get so exciting?"

"Omega, actually. Rocket to the face. You know how it is," the Turian remarked. Wrex barked a short laugh, patting him on the shoulder, and giving far more than a surprise to the Krogan around, especially the one talking about tradition.

"You'll have to tell me about that." Wrex turned to Tali, smiling. "New suit, but I'd recognize you anywhere. Good to see you, kid," Wrex hugged her, even ruffling her… right, she called it a realk. Keep that in your memory.

"You too, Wrex. It's been too long," she smiled under that mask, I'm sure."

"So, where's T'Soni and Alenko?"

"Kaidan's back with the Alliance, and it's a longer story as to why he's not along for the ride. We've seen him, though. As for Liara, she's on Illium as an info broker. Hunting down an old employer of yours actually," I explained. Wrex let himself laugh again.

"Now that's something I did not expect." Wrex started walking back to his throne, us following him. "Should have known the void couldn't hold you."

"Yeah, that's another long story."

"Hmph," Wrex huffed. "I think that's standard for warriors like us. All our stories are long ones."

"True enough. And I've heard plenty about you uniting the clans. I'm glad it's been working out well for you."

"It has. Being a part of the crew that killed Saren gave me more of a reputation than I did before. I reclaimed my surviving old allies, and with my new reputation, gained more. Those stubborn we conquer. Though if a female counterpart to a clan agrees with Urdnot, the males find themselves with little choice but to follow along. The others? We blow the males to hell, spare the females and young. As for the clans we don't have yet, we're either in talks or looking for an opening," Wrex explained.

"You have abandoned many traditions to get your way. Dangerous," the other Krogan warned. Wrex just sighed. I had a closer look at him now, the plate of his head was green, and his armor wasn't the same shade as Urdnot. But a lighter blue decal. Another Clan, most likely. Wrex faced said Krogan, and then slammed his forehead into him, sending him reeling and grunting in pain. Wrex was unfazed.

"Speak when spoken to, Uvenk. I'll drag your clan to glory whether it likes it or not. With or without you." Grunt chuckled at the display, and I tossed Uvenk a smirk. Wrex took a seat on his throne. "How's the Normandy?"

"Laid to rest," I answered, some of the glee at seeing him again sapped by the reminder. "Collector surprise attack got me spaced."

"Well, you look good for spaced. Ah, the benefits of a redundant nervous system," he remarked. Still unfazed.

"Would not have complained about having one of those," I grunted.

"Must have been painful then," Wrex chuckled, obviously knowing that in the first place. "But you're standing here with a strong new ship. With the same name."

"That I am, and that I do."

"Ah, sometimes I miss the old days. Against the unknown and killing it with big fucking guns," Wrex allowed another laugh. "Good times. But as much as it would flatter me, I know you didn't come to Tuchanka just to say hi. What brings you here? Is it my replacement?"

"I don't think anyone ever could, Wrex," Tali remarked, still with humor.

"You're damn right," Wrex smirked.

"Anyways, Wrex. It is actually. Something's wrong with Grunt here, and we don't know what. Neither does he. He's having issues controlling his anger when we're on the ship." Wrex turned his eyes to Grunt who met his gaze.

"Step forward, whelp. Let me have a look at you." Grunt obliged. Wrex stared him down, studying the young Krogan, and sniff the air. "Where are you from? Was your clan destroyed before you could learn what is expected of you?" I opened my mouth to explain, but Grunt spoke first.

"I have no clan. I was tank-bred by Warlord Okeer, my line distilled from Kredak, Moro, Shiagur-" Uvenk cut him off.

"You recite warlords, but you are the offspring of a syringe," he growled.

"I am pure Krogan. You should be in awe." Wrex responded to that claim with a burst of laughter.

"Uvenk may be a fool, but you have much to learn, whelp. You're unproven. Your bloodline is Varren shit. At least until you prove yourself. And Okeer? That is a very old name. A very _hated_ name. I personally have reason to kill him on sight."

"He died before I left the tank. He gave me his knowledge, but he failed to imprint his beliefs upon me." Wrex huffed at Grunt's answer.

"Of course he's dead. You're with Shepard. How the hell could he be alive?"

"So what do we do now, Wrex? What's wrong with him?" I asked, getting us back on track.

"Nothing's wrong with him, Shepard," the eye on the scarred side of his face glanced at me. "He's becoming a full adult."

"That's all this is? Puberty? We were closer to Omega, we should have just stopped there and gotten him a few dances. And partners," Garrus remarked.

"While it wouldn't have hurt," Wrex chuckled, "this needs the rite of passage."

"Too far, Wrex!" Uvenk shouted, storming away. "Your clan may rule, but this thing is not Krogan!"

"Idiot," Wrex muttered. "Grunt, was it? Will you stand with Urdnot?" I remained quiet, letting Grunt make the choice. Grunt looked out at the rest of the bunker being used. It wasn't impressive.

"Is he a worthy leader, Shepard?" Grunt asked me.

"If anyone in the history of the Krogan can bring them back from the brink of extinction, and lead them to success and prosperity? It's Wrex. You'll find none more worthy." Wrex gave a nod of appreciation.

"I will stand with Urdnot," Grunt answered.

"Good. Go speak with the Shaman on the second level," Wrex gestured at a ramp leading to a room overlooking here. "Give him a good enough show, and he'll set you on the path." Grunt nodded and started to lead the way. I wasted no time in following as Wrex smirked.

"You too, Shepard. How many times have you stepped in a shitstorm for your crew, hm?"

Ah, a great sign. "Go ahead, we'll catch up before you leave the planet." We followed Grunt up to the upper level, there were ways further in to… living quarters, perhaps? But what Grunt was interested in was a Krogan wearing some form of leathery clothing rather than armor of a red, Urdnot color, with Uvenk and two of the same colors flanking him. I would assume he's trying to convince the Shaman to not allow it.

"You go beyond yourself, Gatatog Uvenk. The rites of Urdnot are dominant. And remind yourself that you are in Urdnot's stronghold, not Gatatog's." He was as tired as Wrex of his shit already.

"How do we know it will challenge him? He's unnatural!" Uvenk argued. "The beasts of the Rite could ignore him like a lump of plastic." The shaman glanced over, seeing us, with Grunt at the front.

"They know meat and blood no matter the womb. Your barking does not help your case."

"I'll speak for myself," Grunt entered. The Shaman turned to face him and stepped close, sniffing.

"You are the tank bred? You look like any other Krogan youth. Smell true as well. The beasts would have little reason to ignore you as a meal. Your protests are hollow, Uvenk."

"So far I've only heard Uvenk bitch and moan for not getting his way. Far as I can tell? Those Pyjaks are more human than him," I remarked, wanting to get rid of him. Besides, I know where I am. That will be respected. "Grunt's killed mercs, Geth, and Collectors as part of my crew. What have you, Uvenk?"

"There's some fire," The Shaman nodded as Uvenk growled. "And from an alien no less! The shame this heaps on those who whine like pups would fill the belly of Kalros."

"If this must stand on ritual, then I invoke a denial! My Krannt stands against him! He has no one!" Uvenk growled.

"My patience is tested," the Shaman sighed. "But Uvenk invokes correctly. Grunt, who is your Krantt? Your allies willing to kill and die on your behalf?"

"Grunt has done so for me. I'll do the same for him," I answered.

"Being part of your crew is not the same. Do you find him worthy to fight and die for? I ask again to be certain. You are aliens, after all," the Shaman added.

"He may still be learning, but he has much potential. I will. And I know Jack and Zaeed would."

"Bring them forth, then," the Shaman requested.

"I let them wander, but I'll call for them." I keyed the comms. "Jack, Zaeed, up a staircase by Wrex's throne. We've got a whiner who thinks Grunt isn't worthy of the rite of passage. Grunt's Krantt will stand against him."

"Fuck yeah, sounds like fun," Jack answered.

"Garrus? Tali? Kasumi?"

"Sure," Garrus shrugged.

"If Shepard will, I will," Tali added.

"Might as well. Besides, I need someone to take attention when I sneak around," Kasumi remarked. Now there were hurried footsteps coming up the stairs we had come up, with Zaeed and Jack coming around the corner.

"So, who's ass are we beating for Grunt?" Jack asked.

"Is it that asshole, Shepard?" Zaeed gestured at Uvenk. I nodded, and Zaeed looked him up and down. "Eh, I've killed bigger Krogan than you. Where's your battle scars you old shit?" The shaman let himself smirk again.

"Most aliens, and some Krogan," he glanced at Uvenk. "Do not understand our ways. I think these humans, at least, do. Uvenk, your Krantt is outnumbered and outgunned. I believe it is also outmatched." Uvenk growled again.

"Aliens don't know strength! My followers are true Krogan! Everything about Grunt is a lie!" What's a good way to shut him up? Huh. It worked for Wrex… Implants and enhancements, don't fail me now…

I slammed my forehead into his upper jaw. Just below the plate. I headbutted a Krogan. What the fuck. Uvenk recoiled and I felt dizzy. Uvenk clutched his mouth, and spit out a tooth, furious, but absolutely taken aback. Shocked. Grunt, the Shaman, Zaeed, Jack, and Garrus just burst out laughing.

"Shepard!" Tali exclaimed in surprise, checking my forehead.

"You… you dare…?" Uvenk asked, still recovering from the shock.

"I like this human!" The Shaman exclaimed. "He understands!"

"I withdraw my denial," Uvenk muttered. "This will be decided elsewhere." Uvenk and his 'Krantt' left.

"Absolutely worth it," I chuckled, the dizziness fading.

"Shepard, you've some fucking balls on you. I respect the hell out of that," Zaeed stopped his laughter.

"Provoking them was reason enough to like you. But now I respect you. They are, however, your problem now. Grunt, you will be granted the rite. Bring your weapons, armor, and your Krantt. Be prepared to be tested, and to adapt. I can speak no more of what the rite will entail. If you are prepared, we shall begin immediately." I glanced at the others. They shrugged. Though Jack and Zaeed were more eager. I gave Grunt a nod.

"I'm ready."


	43. More Than Survival

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Same as before, hope for a chapter next week, expect one by the following week. Also, hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

The Shaman wasted no time at all. He had nothing to gather, save for a small escort of three other Krogan and ground transport. All he'd say about the former was that they would be witnesses in his place if necessary. All that really told us, was that he had reason to believe that his own death during Grunt's rite of passage wasn't out of the question. As for the latter, it was akin to an oversized truck, no, an APC, though with more verticality to its design than just a horizontal troop transport. Like one of those double-decker buses, just with several inches of metal plating surrounding it on all sides.

Apparently, our destination could be reached through a set of underground roads that all spread out from the very large garage that all these 'Tomkahs' are kept in. I had asked if the roads lead to other clans, and the Shaman, likely because I earned his favor, had decided to explain to an outsider such as myself. The short answer? No. Everywhere these roads reach is claimed and controlled by Clan Urdnot. Travel to a different clan requires either air transport or taking a Tomkah to the surface. There are roads up topside, but less reliable and safe. Hardly surprising. As for specifics on the roads, the Shaman explained that we had come from Urdnot's center, both (relatively) literally and metaphorically. The Krogan equivalent to residential districts connected directly to the center, as does their closest thing to an agricultural center, training grounds, hospital, and butchers. They all connected to Urdnot's center, but also to one another through the network. But there were two exceptions. The first was the passage grounds, our destination, as it was on the outskirts. It had its road that broke off just outside Urdnot's center. The second exception was to the Female clan, which does the same as the passage grounds road, just in a different direction, as well as being guarded and blocked off. On both sides. The females do so for their safety and bargaining power, while on this site, the blockade keeps any 'reckless idiots' from testing the females. The blockades can be opened for passage with some time and effort, and they frequently are, either sending male children over when they reach a certain age and allowing other males in to fulfill 'breeding requests' as well as delivering supplies to the females. Though they have their network like the rest of Urdnot, Wrex still orders supplies to be sent regardless.

Honestly, the fact that there was a Female Urdnot clan both surprised and intrigued me the most. Wrex hadn't talked about the 'female clans' before. Are they a new concept that he developed? Did he just have no reason to discuss them? Are they frequent among the other clans, and if so, how do they operate similarly and differently? All questions to ask Wrex sometime after the rite. But that train of thought came to a close as the Tomkah came to a stop, the Shaman emerging from the driver's compartment, and a door on its side opening. The Shaman gestured for us to follow, and we exited into a dead-end of the tunneled road. On the opposite side of the Tomkah was a stairwell leading up the surface encased in reinforced metal.

"This is Tuchanka's most recent scar," the Shaman explained. "The last surface city to fall in the rebellions. The keystone was at the heart." I noticed the guards were not following us. But setting up a set of monitors. They have surveillance somewhere up there, then. I ensured Grunt was ahead of me, right behind the Shaman. "The Keystone survived wars and the passage of centuries. It endures. Like the Krogan. Like you must today." A few moments later, we came to the end of the tunnel. The keystone was a kind of superstructure towering overhead. Three large support columns connecting diagonally to a central pillar. There were dust and sand being blown around, but nothing close to a sandstorm, visibility was more or less normal. The sky was also dusty, but Aralakh shone dimly through the sky. The surface was lit, better than by moonlight, but not as lit as a clear middle of the day.

Beyond the keystone, there were the bones of civilization. Shattered and toppled skyscrapers, smaller buildings left little more than metal and stone rubble. Grunt took it all in within seconds. When we looked back down, there were bodies. It was impossible to tell how old they were without closer inspection. They had very clearly become food. Whether before or after death is hard to tell. Bones shattered and missing, shreds of 'clothes' and armor scattered. Not one sign of flesh on them. Some showed charring, others appeared at least partially melted. Acid damage.

"Grunt, if you wish to join Clan Urdnot, you must contemplate the keystone and the trials you shall face here. Your Krantt shall strengthen you for this. Many who undergo the rite have none. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they do not. But one can never undergo the rite with those who must undergo it themselves. Adults who find them worthy are allowed to aid them. You are aliens, but you are all adults who have completed rites of your peoples. Warriors, as Wrex's stories, describe. That is why I allow you to stand for him.

"What are the trials?" Grunt asked.

"Who knows?" The Shaman faced him. "There are many stories of many different trials. But you must adapt. You must thrive. No matter the situation. There is always one constant, but that I won't tell you. "I remind you. Not all of Clan Urdnot are great warriors. Not all succeed the trial atop a pile of bodies. If you succeed through wits and cunning, that will be permitted. But know that the 'beasts of the rite' as Uvenk stated, you will not simply be able to hide from them. Blood will have to be spilled. You will not be permitted back down into the roads until the rite is complete. If you make an attempt to walk back to Urdnot, you will most certainly perish. Survive that, and you will still be permitted, as that journey will be far more dangerous than the rite. Are there any final questions?"

"Only what we're supposed to do. And how we'll get this started," Garrus remarked. The Shaman barked a short chuckle.

"Those would be my parting instructions. If there are any _other_ questions?" he paused. No one answered. "Very well. There, the path to the keystone itself. There is a lever. When you hear my voice through transmitters here, begin the rite when ready." The Shaman began returning down the stairwell, but first, he pulled out a metal plate, likely strong enough to resist at least a standard military breaching charge and pulled it across, shutting it off. And cleverly, the hatch was designed so that it would be impossible to try and pull it open from our side.

"Well, this should be fun," Tali murmured, noticeably looking at the dead Krogan. Clearly, she didn't mean it.

"Ah stop whining, buckethead, you got your boyfriend here to protect you," Jack teased, with actual humor in her voice opposed to just plain hostility. Wonder if she even realizes.

"Besides," Zaeed called out. "Fucking psychotic biotic 'ere? One of the best goddamn mercs in the Galaxy? A perfect Krogan? A woman that's basically a ninja thief? Archangel? And not to fucking mention; Commander John Fucking Shepard? The lot of us are gonna be goddamn fine."

"Ninja thief? Really, Zaeed?" Kasumi responded, mock insult in her voice.

"Not my fault you didn't have a reputation for me to hear of. Just calling you 'Kasumi Goto' doesn't sound all that badass."

"Fair," she shrugged.

"Grunt and Krantt. Begin the rite of passage when you are ready," the Shaman spoke through the transmitters. Grunt had been waiting by it the whole time, and simply pulled it down on que. The keystone in the central pillar began to raise but leaving a block of metal on the ground. The bottom of the section raising was flat. "First, thousands of years ago, the Krogan conquered Tuchanka. Mastering a natural world that not only did we survive upon, but thrived." The keystone dropped, a loud, echoing clanging noise. It would have been louder, had it been higher. This was only about a third of the way up. It was silent for a short while. Nothing happening. Yet, I had the feeling we were being watched. And I don't mean the Shaman.

"There, on the ridge," Garrus called out. We all looked where he had pointed out. There was a lone Varren atop the ridge that had been watching us. I don't know for how long. Seeing us, it backed away behind the ridge and then howled. At least, their equivalent to a wolf's howl. This was more like a hissing roar. Comparable to the hisses of Alligators and Crocodiles, but the volume was like a lion's roar, and it lasted for a good ten seconds, with another five of silence before a more distant echo answered. The keystone was like bait of a kind.

"Perimeter, now!" I ordered. Pack tactics. They're going to poke and prod at us first. Find a weakness in the line. "Garrus, Zaeed, we take the side facing the ridge. Rest of you, shorter range sides. Kasumi, don't bother getting sneaky, I don't want to risk it. They might smell you." A Varren, likely the same scout, crested the ridge again. I had my Mattock out, watching for any sign of Varren, and took the shot right between the eyes. The round hit its mark, killing the reptilian hound, and the force sent him tumbling back over. That was followed by a shorter hissing roar, communicating something to the rest of the pack.

We were standing atop the hatch, so in case the Varren do attempt to come around the back, they won't be able to just pounce right atop any of us, they'll have to get down on the ground first. I heard Grunt fire, glancing over to see that a Varren had crept along and over the side. Now with a rather large hole in its head from the slug of a Claymore. Then another shotgun blast from behind me, Tali. Another Varren had gotten by the keystone and was about to start running down the stairs before Tali put an end to that. While Jack just let her biotics do the work on my left by smashing it into a concrete wall. Another hissing roar and the charge began. This was a large pack of Varren, and we held our ground. Firing, and firing, covering each other when a reload was needed. Each of us used up at least a full clip. Not every shot hit, but there were a lot of dead Varren. There was another hissing roar, more than likely the Alpha, and those who were just starting to crest their respective ridgelines, fell back, and it was silent again for a good minute.

"You have done well, trusting in your Krantt. The Varren flee, having lost too much of their pack to risk continuing," the Shaman proclaimed. "You dominated the battlefield to your strength and held the advantage against the horde. Grunt, you may not have given the order, but you followed it. If you did not before, you now see the wisdom in Shepard's command. Contemplate that, for battles past and future. Now, return to the keystone." Grunt wasted no time in doing so. Once again, the keystone rose. "Then, the Krogan were lifted to the stars to destroy the fears of a Galaxy. The Rachni. An enemy only we could push back, only we could chase into their lair. Only we could eradicate. And so, we did. And so, we reveled in our victory." The hammer lifted 2/3rds of the way up and dropped. The echoing ringing of metal on metal was both louder and longer. We waited again, searching for whatever was coming for us next when there was a distant buzzing noise. Getting louder, and louder, before a form slammed down onto the ground something over a dozen meters from us. It was some kind of giant, flying arthropod with a long, worm-like neck and gaping jaws. It coiled its neck down and then upwards as it screeched, a pair of large, red insectoids jumping off of its back before it took off again.

"Harvester," Grunt stated. "And those must be Klixen. Symbiotes. They breathe fire."

"It's Tuchanka," Garrus sighed. "Of course they do."

"Grunt," I called out, pulling the missile from my back, and then tossing it to the Krogan when I had his attention. "You watch the skies for the thing, put it down when it lands." As for the Klixen, they could take some hits. Their chitin held out to the first… pair of bullets would be my guess, but after? These rounds hit magnitudes harder than any weapons developed by Humans before we got to the Prothean Archives. You could take down tanks from those days with one or two clips at least with DMRs like the Mattock, and probably from automatic rifles like the Avenger. That makes it pretty scary to think about facing off these Klixen without modern firepower. Oh, that makes it even better. When the Klixen died, they just exploded. Just, boom. Zaeed and Jack just laughed.

"What the bloody hell is this planet?" Zaeed exclaimed. The Harvester returned, and as it roared, Klixen jumping off its back yet again, three of them this time, Grunt fired the launcher at the center of its neck. Just looking at it you could tell it was soft and fleshy. I'm pretty sure it's translucent as well. The missile impacted, and just tore its neck to shreds It looked like it tried to roar, but with its neck wide open, air easily escaped. Grunt loaded and fired another while we dealt with the Klixen, and it just blasted the upper part of the Harvester's neck and head off its body, which began writhing on the ground before shriveling up into a creepy and disgusting pile, it's orange blood pooling.

"Good. The Harvester would have eventually tired of delivering Klixen to kill for it, but instead, you struck at the beast directly cutting off the hordes of Klixen at their source. Just as we carved a bloody path for Suen, and slaughtered the Rachni where they were strongest, wiping out the remaining Rachni worlds with ease. One final trial and one final lesson remain. Go," the Shaman explained. Eager to continue, Grunt once again pulled the lever. "And again, we struck out. We became the new fear of the Galaxy, and now all Krogan bear the Genophage. It is our reward, our curse. It is a fight where the only goal is survival. As is your last trial, Grunt and Krantt. Survive. Endure. And you will be Urdnot. Now, the hammer lifted all the way to the top, and a chill went down my spine. What exactly is it that we are supposed to survive against? Tuchanka's Apex Predator? And it's not the Krogan? I'm not an expert on Tuchankan wildlife, but there is one creature native to this world I know of that we haven't seen yet. Dear god no… I couldn't control it; my breathing began to quicken. We've killed them before, but we had the Mako. The Mako isn't down here, we're just on foot. We only have one missile launcher. Shit, the ground can't be trusted. We need cover. Sturdy cover. Where? My breathing quickened; I began shaking. No, not just me. The ground too. Shit. Fuck. Fuck. Damn it. No, no, no, no.

Hell itself burst from the ground ahead, straight ahead of me, at the same crest that the Varren started peeking over first. I couldn't breathe any faster if I tried. Zaeed, Jack, and Grunt immediately went for cover back by the keystone, hoping that the thick metal would protect them better than any of the rusted metal.

But me?

I just stood there, frozen in place, my weapon down, as I stared at the jaws of death. As for Garrus and Tali? They saw how I responded to this, and they moved me for me. Pulling and pushing me along quickly. My legs moved, but I didn't feel in control of them, they just responded. Up the stairs of the keystone as I continued to stare at it. It spat acid in our direction, and I was pushed down to the side at the peak of the stairs. I was behind thick walls of metal, but this ground, it couldn't be safe. Nowhere could be safe until it's dead and gone. I'm going to get them all killed. Grunt, Zaeed, Jack, Kasumi, Garrus, and Tali. We don't have the Mako, and that's going to get them killed. What can I do? There's nothing I can do. Nothing at all. We're fucked. We're going to die, we're going to die, we're going to die.

* * *

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

Keelah, it's happened again. Just like when we fought the first thresher maw. It was never easy for him afterward, but never this bad. Is it because we don't have the Mako to fight it in? He was sat on the ground, in cover at least, his legs pulled up against him and rocking, muttering to himself, too quiet for me to hear.

"Oi, what the fuck happened to him?" Zaeed asked, shooting at the Thresher Maw.

"It's Akuze. He's terrified of Threshers," I explained, getting down in front of him, trying to get him to look at me, holding his head in my hands so he was looking straight at me.

"Oh… Right… Shit," Zaeed murmured. "Shoot the damn tongue. Our guns won't break through its armor, but the tongue will bleed."

"And missiles?" Grunt questioned.

"Fuck it, shit should work. If you can get one in the mouth that should kill it," Zaeed answered.

"Then let's kill it," Grunt growled.

"You know, the Shaman did say survival was the only goal. Don't suppose we could just… hang out around here?" Garrus remarked. "No? Alright then."

They all shot as the ground shook, not sure what it was doing, I was just staring at Shepard trying to get him back to us. His breathing was starting to slow. I wish I could take his helmet off, that might work better, but this place is irradiated. Not enough to harm Krogan, and not enough to harm anyone now, but exposing him to it now might cause some problems in the future.

"It's going under," Zaeed called out. The ground was shaking, then they adjusted their angles and fired again. Grunt was getting aggravated, not having had a good shot. I heard him growl and run down back to the far less protected main area. The Thresher shifted its focus to easier prey, spitting acid as Grunt fired a missile at its open maw. He barely missed; the mouth having closed too much by the time the missile struck. It hurt, but this wasn't the main cannon of the Mako. It would take more missiles than we likely had to blow through the armor.

"Come on!" Grunt roared. "I'm ready! I! Am! Krogan!" I looked up, seeing him run towards the maw, probably hoping that a shot would land more easily if he was closer.

"What the fuck is that idiot doing?" Zaeed exclaimed. Grunt got close enough that the maw decided it wouldn't just spit acid. More of its body came out of the ground, and Grunt started to retreat. The maw lunged, attempting to devour him. And it was going to hit its mark. Why wasn't he firing? At the last moment, Grunt leapt, spun, and the maw enveloped him. Less than a second later, before anyone could react, the maw's head just… exploded from the inside out. The body going limp. Then, a form stood, covered in blood and shredded flesh. But not his own. The acid was scarring his armor, though he's lucky Shepard makes everyone wear their full armor, helmet included in combat, but clearly, he was fine. He bellowed, no, howled in laughter.

"Shepard! Shepard it's dead! We're all ok!" I reassured. He began to settle, confused. "It's ok, we're ok. It's over," I whispered. He gulped, and peeked over, instinctually recoiling when he saw what was left of it, in case it still lived, but it sunk it. It was dead. Like the ones, we fought before. He stood, shaking himself as the Shaman spoke.

"You… you have killed the thresher maw? That has not been done in- Hm." A shuttle passed overhead, landing beside the entrance to the tunnel as Grunt returned to us. "It seems your trial is not over quite yet. Though this victory will find you far easier than the maw." Out of the shuttle stepped Uvenk, the Krogan who gave Grunt so much hassle. Though he had three others with him. They were all armed and waiting. Uvenk began pacing in front of them. We remained up by the keystone, them, down by the shuttle.

"You live. And not only that, but you brought down the thresher maw. No one has done that in generations. Urdnot Wrex was the last." That's not surprising at all.

"My Krantt gives me strength beyond my genes. Which are already perfection," Grunt answered.

"This will cause discussion., I wonder… you say you're are pure? No alien meddling in your construction? Just the Warlord Okeer?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"Now you will command respect. Your strength may be artificial, but it's a tolerable loophole. A reason to accept you. You are a mistake, but your potential could tip the current balance of the clans."

"You spit on the name of my father. You spit on Shepard's name even as he shamed you. But now you stop your ranting because I'm strong?" Grunt questioned, more than a little annoyed. I'm surprised Grunt continues to defend Shepard. I thought he would have looked down on how the trauma took him.

"Join Gatatog. You would have restrictions. No breeding, no serving on an alien ship. But you'd have a clan." The other Krogan made a point of brandishing their weapons.

"You don't want me; you want my strength."

"Of course we don't want you," Uvenk sneered. "Nor do I want to cooperate with Urdnot. But I had to. Just as I must allow this loophole. Clan Gatatog is on the verge. Either of greatness or joining the dust. I get traditionalist support if I fight you, and reformer support if I back you. Your rite of Passage has tipped that balance as well."

Grunt laughed.

"Uvenk… you're an idiot. You admit your weakness. You admit your clan is failing, you offer me the life of a caged animal, and expect me to agree? None of you have killed the Thresher maw, and I will not be controlled by my lesser. Wrex was the last to kill the Thresher. Wrex is the only clan leader worthy of me."

"Then die here, before any clan can accept you," Uvenk growled.

"Hell yeah! Been waiting for this!" Jack cheered, standing, glowing blue as her biotics enveloped one of Uvenk's thugs, and flung him towards a broken metal girder in the rubble, spearing him upon it. Not even a Krogan would survive that. Garrus put a sniper round through the skull of one thug, and Zaeed put the other full of holes. The Krogan had stupidly not readied themselves for a fight, just leaving themselves in the open. Was it arrogance? Or just plain stupidity?

"Uvenk's mine!" Grunt roared, charging down to face him head-on. Uvenk pulled a knife, similar in size to the one Wrex used. Meaning, it was a very large blade. But that didn't slow Grunt down. He tackled Uvenk, and I saw him try to jab the blade into Grunt's side, but it glanced off the armor, thicker and more advanced thanks to Okeer's labor, no doubt. Grunt likely chuckled. He slammed his fist down and down and down. He took the arm Uvenk held the knife in and bent it at a very unnatural angle, the blade quickly falling from Uvenk's grip as he roared out in pain. Grunt took the knife and jammed it down. I couldn't see where in Uvenk it went, but probably the neck. Uvenk was still struggling, then Grunt jabbed again, and he went stiff, then limp. When Grunt stood, the blade was not in his grasp. I saw the hilt coming out of Uvenk's mouth at an angle that the blade had been jammed in his mouth upwards, piercing into the brain.

"You bring honor to yourself, and to Urdnot. I shall join you momentarily," the Shaman proclaimed through the transmitters. Grunt rejoined us up by the keystone.

"Shepard," he began, standing over he and I. He was still sat on the floor, but no longer curled up into himself. "Today is the first time I have seen you show fear, let alone terror. A coward would have simply ran at the sight of the Maw, not standing there, frozen. Why?" Grunt asked. Also surprisingly, it was not at all accusatory. Shepard sighed and looked up at the Krogan.

"It was…" his voice was still a little shaky. "It was… God, how long? Seven years ago now. I uh… went down to investigate a distress signal on the Colony of Akuze. There were fifty-one of us total, myself included. We thought Batarians were the cause, so we landed away from the colony to proceed on foot. Standard procedure. Then… I don't even know how many, but several thresher maws attacked us. We had no choice but to run. I… I was the only one to make it home," he explained. Shuddering. "Then, during our hunt for Saren, I found out that my second, Corporal Toombs, had survived. And oh, did he have a story to tell." He looked straight up to the sky. "Fucking Cerberus was behind it all. And they tortured him for years in experimentation before he escaped. One of the reasons why, after this mission, I'll see every one of those bastards dead and burning in hell."

"A worthy, goal," the Shaman stated, walking up the stairs, having spit on Uvenk's body. "Grunt, this wisdom I would not expect Okeer to have told you as you grew. But as Shaman, I have seen many warriors of many different kinds come to me for guidance. A warrior who boasts no fears is a liar and fears much. A warrior who has been made terrified has been tested. If that warrior puts down the blade after the event has been broken. Yet the one who picks the blade back up to fight again is a worthy warrior indeed. I do not believe what you witnessed, Grunt, was a fear, not even a terror of thresher maws. Wrex has told me much of you, Shepard. He has told me that your first concern is always your crew. Your Krantt. Your terror came from a belief that your actions had doomed them. Your mind has simply bound thresher maws, and that terror together," the Shaman explained. Wise indeed, and again, very surprising to hear from a Krogan.

"I believe I understand, Shaman," Grunt answered.

"Good. You have earned the honor of clan and name. Many survive, yes. But none have slain a Thresher Maw since Wrex underwent the rite. The names of both you and your Krantt shall live in glory. You are now Urdnot Grunt," the Shaman proclaimed. "You may now own property, join the armies of Urdnot, and apply to serve under a battle master." Grunt took a breath and looked down a moment of Shepard.

"You're free to do and go wherever. Congrats, Urdnot Grunt," Shepard spoke. Grunt was silent for another moment.

"Shepard is my battle master. He has no match."

"I understand. Come, let us return to Urdnot. Wrex wishes to congratulate you personally."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

I'm calmed down, normal again. Finally. And to say I'm shocked that Krogan of all races found understanding there would be an understatement. Wrex is one thing, but he hadn't really built up a high opinion of his own people for me. Not to say I disagreed with giving them another chance. But… damn. The Tomkah came to a stop, and we disembarked. As we exited, just as the Shaman had said, Wrex and his personal guard were waiting to greet us. Wrex at the forefront of them, and immediately started walking forward.

"You just can't stop causing trouble, can you?" Wrex laughed. Grunt and I being the first to approach him in turn. I was the last to kill a Maw in the rite, as I'm sure everyone's been blabbing to you. What's next? Are you a quint, Grunt? Do you shit dark matter?"

"Quint?" Tali asked.

"Does he have five instead of four," Wrex explained with a smirk.

"Wha-? Oh Keelah," Tali shook her head, covering her eyes with a hand. Wrex chuckled.

"Damn good work, Urdnot Grunt. Damn good work. You know the symbolism of killing the maw? You remember the Shaman's words. The Genophage is a fight where the goal is survival, and the rite represents it with surviving against a thresher maw until it gets bored. Killing it? That's beating the Genophage. So. How'd you kill it?" Wrex gave me a look with a slight nod. This symbolism means more to him then he'll let on in public company.

"Fired a missile launcher in its mouth after letting it try to eat me," Grunt answered. Wrex bellowed with laughter.

"You might want to stick around or a few days, Grunt. The females are going to be all over you."

"Heh, heh, heh."

"So, Shepard, you plan to stick around a little while? We've got some catching up to do," Wrex asked.

"I'd be happy to, Wrex. Just-" EDI piped up in my ear.

"Commander, Mordin would like to speak to you. It's urgent, though he says we are already where we need to be."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Don't worry, Urz is coming. It was just didn't really fit to explore Urdnot's center yet. Next chap we'll have the space lizard dog**


	44. More Than Just Numb ers

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey, sorry about the late upload, I finished the chapter at 2AM and wanted to wait until I was actually awake to do my own proofread on top of the editors being available. Sorry about that, and hope you enjoy! (Urz next chapter, sorry)**

 **Commander John Shepard**

I returned to the shuttle immediately, calling Mordin the moment the shuttle doors closed. The others had been left to their own devices, with Wrex's protection, of course.

"Shepard, important news, convenient timing" Mordin answered the call. "Too important to wait. Data just received. Processing, analyzing, not sure how to begin. Too much intel."

"Mordin, slow down. Start from the beginning. What happened?"

"Remember work on Genophage modifications, yes?" I confirmed for the Salarian that I did. "Part of team. Scientists, varying types. Blood Pack mercenaries captured former member of team. Maelon Heplorn. Last seen on Tuchanka. Might torture, make example. Recovery would be personal favor."

"Think they know about his work?"

"Not likely, unless Maelon revealed himself. Just as possible captured simply for being Salarian on Tuchanka. Doesn't matter, want him safe. My assistant. My student."

"Absolutely. I can talk to Wrex, or do you want me to come get you first?"

"Latter, please. Personal matter, personal presence."

"Understood, on my way." I ended that call and called Garrus as I started to take the shuttle out.

"Shepard?" Garrus asked.

"Put Wrex on the line for me, would you?"

"Sure." A moment passed, as I figured Garrus either returned to the Krogan's throne or just lifted his Omni-tool by him.

"You know I still have an Omni-tool, right Shepard?" Wrex remarked.

"Wasn't sure how much some little things had changed so I played it safe. Anyways, another crewmember, a Salarian just heard that an old colleague got captured by the Blood Pack. I'm taking the shuttle to pick him up and bring him down. Just making sure the shuttle stays cleared and you can prepare however you need. Figure we might need to talk in private." Wrex huffed.

"Your shuttle is fine. As for the Salarian… I think I already know about it. I'll call for my Chief Scout and we'll meet in the war room. I can guess what your Salarian was a part of, but he'll be safe from Urdnot," Wrex reassured. That was good to hear as I broke atmo, quickly finding myself back in the Normandy's cargo bay, Mordin boarding fully suited up without needing the atmosphere to be restored. I just touched down, vented the shuttle's crew compartment, let him in, and took right off back to Tuchanka. Back the same way we landed, no air traffic control even bothering to contact us. We landed and disembarked, with the Krogan on guard stared Mordin down, but didn't move to act. The same Krogan of authority who stopped us when we landed, the one with the light on his chest, stepped up.

"Follow me," he grumbled. Naturally, we did just that. Following him up the stairs to the overlook where we spoke with the Shaman and Uvenk, the former wasn't present, and down the hallway, I had noticed. I had guessed that there was some measure of residential down these halls, and for at least this one, I was partially correct. There were rusted nameplates that my translator was, fortunately, able to pick up. The Shaman's quarters, Ambassadors, Forge Master, even storerooms and an armory. I imagine Wrex's quarters are around here somewhere. But we wouldn't be seeing it now, as at a T-junction at the end of this hallway was the War-Room, two Krogan standing guard beside it, and who opened the door to allow us in. The Krogan who escorted us here did not follow. Inside was everyone who had come down with me to Tuchanka in the first place along the sides of a large holotable, while Wrex was at the far side flanked by who I'd assume to be the Chief Scout. His armor was a mix of leather and metal plates, compared to Wrex's armor which was layers and layers of plated metal. Wrex gave me a nod at my entrance, the door shutting behind us, then stared Mordin down a moment. The Salarian had since removed his helmet after entering the shuttle the first time. Mordin returned the gaze.

"Are you going to introduce yourself or what?" Wrex asked.

"Professor Mordin Solus, Ex-STG. Geneticist, biologist, Xeno and otherwise."

"Hm. Don't go spreading any of that around," Wrex warned with a huff. "Shepard tells me a friend of yours got captured by the Blood Pack here on Tuchanka?"

"Yes, former student, assistant. Maelon Heplorn."

"You know what he was doing on Tuchanka?" Wrex asked.

"No."

"Might be surprised. Maelon came here, to Urdnot, to me, about a month ago. I figured he'd have been torn to shreds by one of the less friendly clans by now, but you've fresh intel that he was captured?"

"Yes. Contacts in STG informed me. Maelon captured by Blood Pack alive, three weeks prior. Earlier today, drunken Blood Pack heard rambling about Salarian being kept alive 'back home.'"

"And so, the little idiot went to Weyrloc…" Wrex grumbled. "Tell them."

"A month ago, as the Clan Leader said, the Salarian came here to Urdnot. Urdnot turned him away after he met with Wrex, and he left. A week later, like you said, Salarian, one of my boys reported that he saw a Salarian being taken to Weyrloc by a group of Blood Pack. Couldn't tell me his condition other than that he had two legs to walk on and a head to use them. I sent another scout to check it out, but he never reported back. Figured they got him too and I'd rather not waste any more Krogan to see if a Salarian still has a head on his shoulders on Tuchanka," the Chief Scout explained.

"After I heard that Blood Pack took a Salarian after I turned Maelon away, I hoped it was either some other sorry little shit or that Maelon wasn't going to live long. But not for the reasons you'd think, or I'd probably have killed him myself," Wrex added. I raised a brow and leaned forward, as did Garrus and Zaeed. Jack, Kasumi, and Tali were, of course, paying attention, well, maybe except Jack, but they just hadn't leaned forward. Grunt only seemed to have a passing interest.

"What Maelon came to me for does not leave this room," Wrex warned, looking for confirmation from everyone present. "Maelon came to me with an offer, explaining the guilty conscience he had. Surprised me, for a Salarian, the quads on him for what he admitted. He offered to work on a Genophage cure." Now Wrex had Jack's attention, and Grunt's full attention. I saw a split second of shock on Mordin's features, but he hid it.

"Why-" the Chief Scout began, then stopped himself. "Clan leader… why did you turn him down? Was he lying?"

"No, no I doubt he was. And I denied him because of the cost. It wasn't credits or supplies. He didn't ask for the former, and what he needed of the latter he either already had or were easy enough to get. I sent Maelon away because he claimed to need Females to test and experiment on. Alive. Volunteers, yes, but a lot of females were going to die in the process. He told me as much. That's why I turned him down."

"If they signed up for it, what's it really matter?" Jack remarked. Wrex glanced at the bald woman with just one eye.

"Krogan females suffer far more than their share as it is. Countless females, fertile or otherwise, have a death wish. The only thing keeping so many of them from going through with it is that all of them are more valuable alive than dead. Many of them would jump at the opportunity for a useful death. I took counsel with Uta, the leader of Urdnot's female clan, before deciding. We both agreed that it was too high a price," Wrex explained. "If Weyrloc has him and he's still alive? I think it's obvious why."

"I've fought plenty of Blood Pack, Wrex. but you keep talking about a Clan Weyrloc. That link escapes my knowledge. Care to explain?" Garrus asked.

"Weyrloc Guld is the Blood Pack's founder and leader. He's also the head of Clan Weyrloc. All Weyrloc males are members of the Blood Pack, and Guld's most fanatic followers."

"What makes the fucker so special?" Zaeed questioned.

"Guld was already in line to take over Weyrloc, then his first mate gave birth to twins. Boy and a girl. Now all of Weyrloc thinks he's got some kind of destiny," Wrex answered. "Fucking idiots."

"The Genophage is a lottery. I had a cousin win twenty consecutive games of quasar, the lucky bastard. I'd ask him for a loan, but he's an idiot, and I'd never swear my allegiance to him. He got lucky, so did Guld," the Scout added.

"So, what are we doing? Should we sneak in, get Maelon, and leave? Or is this giving you an opportunity, Wrex?' Tali brought us to the matter at hand. Wrex straightened his posture and activated the holotable, showing a map of this region of Tuchanka. Highlighted, were the borders of Urdnot and Clan Weyrloc. The two were neighbors.

"Since the Blood Pack's, and by extension, Weyrloc's main interests are off-world, the most they really care about their neighbors, like us, is that we keep out of range of their firepower. That's how any border works on Tuchanka. Weyrloc might not control as much territory as us, but when I reclaimed Urdnot, my brother, Wreav, had arranged a cease-fire with them. One of the few things he ever did that I haven't changed. I didn't want them breathing down my neck as I re-established myself and made real allies. But I know that Weyrloc will never accept my rule, I was always going to have to deal with them eventually, and they know that. If Urdnot is going to come out on top, we need to strike first."

"Why haven't you?" Grunt asked.

"Because while most of Weyrloc's strength is off-world, with just one signal, Weyrloc can call for every last member of the Blood Pack across the Galaxy to return. If we move to begin a siege or an invasion, that's exactly what he'll do, and by the time we break through their defenses, Blood Pack will be both raining down on top of us and slaughtering everyone at Urdnot while we're away," Wrex explained.

"So we're going in alone then," I stated.

"Maybe not, Shepard," Wrex stopped me. "You've got a new Normandy. Can it jam any outgoing signals from Weyrloc? Krogan anti-air is really only enough to deal with shuttles coming in to drop off troops."

"EDI?" I asked aloud, knowing she was listening in. That piqued Wrex's curiosity.

"Yes, Commander. Jamming and intercepting any signals sent out by Weyrloc communications would be a simple matter, and we would be able to do so without required atmospheric entry." Wrex was quiet a moment.

"If you were anyone else in the Galaxy, I'd figure that was just a VI. But you didn't have to repeat a thing to it, and that sure as hell wasn't an organic voice. Or a speaker like Tali," Wrex nodded his head in her direction. That was a void-damned AI, wasn't it?"

"Yep."

"You're not working with the Alliance right now, are you?"

"As much as I'd rather be, no."

"You've got a lot to tell me about after we wipe Weyrloc off the map."

"So do you."

"Hm," Wrex huffed. He then zoomed the map in at Weyrloc's center. "Weyrloc's based in what was once a Krogan hospital, it's got a lot more surface access than Urdnot, though they have their own network just like we do. Regardless, the hospital remains our only real concern. Most of their strength is there, and if it falls, Weyrloc's done."

"So it's a hospital. Lob some artillery at them and call it done, right?" Jack remarked.

"Maybe for one of your hospitals. But for Krogan, we have to build them like fortresses. Every hospitalized Krogan is in a nearly constant blood rage. The walls are thick concrete, the supports strengthened by metal plating. We could blast it down in time once we've moved artillery into range, but that'll take days or weeks. Jammed or not, word would reach the rest of the Blood Pack by then. Can your AI get into Weyrloc systems and fuck them up if you get inside the base?" Wrex explained.

"I can, provided an access point to their network is found. Any terminal either connected to the network directly or connected to one that is will be sufficient."

"Perfect. I'll order all of Urdnot to start mobilizing. Nothing will be moved over the surface, but my armies will be prepared to move tomorrow."

"That fast?" Garrus remarked.

"We're Krogan. Every clan is ready to go to war with each other at a moment's notice. It's just a matter of getting them all here ready to attack then spread out for defense. Anyways, I'll also call upon a few nearby allies to bolster our forces. More bodies will only help this go faster. Clans Bragus, Ravenor, and the Remnants of Nakmor should do."

"Remnants?" I asked.

"Nakmor's got a lot of history, but over a year ago, the majority of the Female clan announced that they were joining the Andromeda Initiative, under the command of their Female Clan leader, Morda. Around half their males followed along, they've been off-world since, and they're welcoming members of any other clan that wants to follow. The Nakmor staying have an ambassador here, doing his damndest to ally with us while still being an independent Nakmor, but they need us. They do this for us, I'll allow something that lets them think they're independent. Doesn't matter. Shepard, tomorrow I need you and your team to take a Tomkah around Urdnot's southern border and into Bragus territory to Weyrloc's southwest. Bragus is a small clan so Weyrloc hasn't bothered with many defenses on their side. I'll have scout reports to show you a path that should let you close to their main compound unseen. Signal us when you get to a point we'll determine later, and move in to infiltrate and take down their security while we begin our assault. Time it right, and their artillery and mines will be deactivated as soon as we get in range of them. That will send Weyrloc scrambling. Maybe even panicked when they can't get word out."

"I'm game, Wrex. Plan sounds solid."

"Good. I'll owe you one for this, Shepard. The Normandy is the only reason we're even able to do this. Now, before you go do whatever the hell you want while I work my ass off getting all of this ready, there is one thing." Wrex pulled a large stack of papers out from under the table and laid it down in front of Grunt. Folded, varying colors of paper. And he tossed one at me. The papers were folded onto themselves, I'd say "sealed," but it's just a bit of tape keeping it folded upon itself.

"The hell are these?" Wrex smirked wide.

"Breeding requests from the females." Grunt's eyes went wide for a moment and he chuckled eagerly. I nearly started myself, but the beginning of the grin immediately turned to a frown as I glanced back down at the paper I had been tossed.

"No, that's not from Tali," Wrex remarked nonchalantly, before bursting into laughter as everyone except Tali and I, _especially_ Garrus just began howling. Though without pause to the Krogan's comment, Tali had shouted

"Wrex!" Before pulling her realk down over her eyes and sinking into her chair as if to hide out of embarrassment.

"Well. I suppose I'm flattered." I shrugged, some of the shock wearing off so I can take the humor of this situation in my stride. "Tell the lovely lady that I'll pass. Maybe that I've already put my own request out."

"John!" Tali exclaimed, pulling her realk down even further with one hand while her left punched me in the shoulder. Upon realizing she used my first name, she groaned in further embarrassment. The scout was just confused, but the others found some more humor in that.

"So we're done here. Grunt, if I were you, I'd go get a full stomach then speak to the ambassador to the female clan to go… fulfill some of those requests," Wrex chuckled. "Rest of you? Get some rest. Tomorrow's gonna be fun…"

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We were around two miles out from Weyrloc's base when the Tomkah came to a stop, our driver telling us we had arrived. The entire ground team had been gathered, and Grunt was awfully cheery. We disembarked as I sent the signal to Wrex, the Normandy confirming that all Weyrloc signals were jammed. We were at the end of a highway that had collapsed, rubble and ruined cities around. Nowhere to go but a ramp down the side and along. There was the occasional pest to kill for the first leg of the Journey. Stray Varren, a Klixen, and even a pair of Vorcha, but against all of us they're hardly a threat.

Eventually, as the Hospital started to come into view, we came upon a more organized group, though organized is relative, of Vorcha led by two Krogan. Blood Pack. The Krogan appeared to be trying to call for reinforcements but frustrated as both bashed their hands against the side of their heads like they were trying to 'fix' a comm unit. Our biotics put them down. It went much the same until we reached an entrance to the hospital. The door was locked electronically, the guards just being Vorcha we put down easily, we were able to unlock the door easily, unfortunately, it wasn't our connection into the network. Whatever this entrance used to be for, this just had a ramp down into some other floor of the hospital. And there was a body at the base of the ramp. It was clearly human, male. He was wearing nothing but briefs, not sure how long he's been dead, however. Mordin quickly led the way down the ramp to investigate the body, running a medical scan.

"Sores. Tumors. From radiation exposure. Deliberate? Side effect of presence on Tuchanka? Ligatures on wrists on ankles, meaning restraints. Track marks for repeated injection sites. Test subject. Not patient. Victim of experimentation. Part of tests to cure Genophage."

"Why use a Human to try and cure the Genophage?" Tali asked.

"Humans useful test subjects. Highest rates of genetic diversity. Even non-pureblood Asari have lower diversity. While Human/Krogan genetics dissimilar, it narrows down possible treatments. Induce symptoms similar to Genophage in one Human, test possible cures, repeat. Not unlikely that either induction of symptoms requires different process or removal of symptoms. Sometimes both. Larger reactions to smaller stimuli."

"Well that's a bit fucked," Zaeed muttered.

"Under these methods, yes. But methods often used for testing medicine. Symptoms, however, are not artificially induced and narrowed further by use on cousin species, like Humans and Chimpanzees. Turians and Sleven. Quarians and La'Shallem. Asari strangely lack cousin species, while Krogan potential cousin species likely died out long before the Krogan created nuclear weaponry. No records."

"And what tests were they doing, exactly?" Miranda asked.

"Locations of tumors suggest mutation of adrenal, pineal glands. Deliberate, of course. Modifying hormone levels. Counterattack on glands hit by Genophage. Clever."

"And how close do you believe they are?" Miranda continued.

"Difficult to say. Need more data. However, tests conceptually sound. Genophage alters hormone levels. Could repair damage with hormonal counterattack."

"And why aren't they testing on Varren or something native to this hellscape?" Jacob butted in.

"Hm, use of Humans for genetic diversity likely implicates an earlier stage in development, testing, proof of concept. Tuchankan fauna used in developmental stages. However, this Human could be final, disposed subject of early tests. Perhaps in developmental stages, and using Human test subject to ensure proof of concept as tests narrowed down. Wise to delay use of Varren until necessary. Powerful bite." I glanced back down at the body. Poor sod. Might have been a pirate or merc, yeah, but still. Going out on a lab table isn't a way I'd wish on most anyone. Maybe I'd wish it on TIM. Probably. We continued along and down, looking for terminals but finding none so far. Just another door. Weapons ready out of caution, we went ahead. This was being used as a storeroom. I'm honestly not sure what it might have been used for once, as any such signs have likely been long removed. But at our far right side of the room, there was a ramp that went up to the wall ahead of us and along to another door that had just opened. Out walked three Krogan, the one at the center without his helmet, and his weapon away. Unlike his guards. I held up a hand for patience from the others. Though I didn't lower my own weapons yet.

"Off-worlders," the Krogan growled under his breath. His armor was, naturally, that of the blood pack. "I am the speaker for Clan Weyrloc, off-worlders! The armies of Urdnot advance and you have shed our blood. By rights, you should be dead, and Urdnot swallowed by the void for this allegiance!" He paced in front of the railing. "But Weyrloc Guld, the Chief of Chiefs, has ordered that you be given leave to flee and spread the message of our coming!" Hm… is that a fuel line along the edge of that catwalk? First, I remembered that this was Tuchanka as I chose my words, while my eyes followed the pipe for a sign that it was fuel.

"If we turn and run, we might trip on all the corpses we left to get here. That just sounds mighty inconvenient compared to putting a mouthy lizard in the dirt," I called out. Ah, there it is. That's definitely a fuel line alright.

"You killed our youngest and weakest, Human. They were not worthy of remaining near our glorious work! Within our fortress, you shall find death delivered to you by hardened Blood Pack veterans! Tempered by savagery and war! Dedicated to a single goal! The Salarian _will_ cure the Genophage, and Clan Weyrloc will drown the Galaxy in a sea of blood!" Blood for the Blood god and all that, huh?

"There's another way to do this. You want to cure the Genophage, I get that-"

"No, Human. You understand _nothing_!" he roared. "You have not seen the piles of bodies of children who never lived! The Krogan were wronged! And Weyrloc will make it right, and have our revenge!"

"You try it your way and all the Krogan will get will be a few billion megatons worth of explosives and Mass Accelerator rounds dropped on you from orbit. You stand down and follow Wrex? The Krogan might actually live long enough to see the benefits of a cured Genophage," I warned.

"Urdnot Wrex is a coward and an alien lover! He would present his hind to the Turians and Salarians simply to ask for the Genophage, before thanking them for our curse in the first place!" Yeah, this guy doesn't know Wrex at all. He's going to find a way to diplomatically scare the Council into allowing a Genophage cure. I may not be able to see how that would even be possible, but it's Wrex. That crazy bastard would find a way. The spokesman began to pace again.

"When we cure the Geno-" Alright, I'm tired of this.

"Even for someone called 'Speaker' you talk too much," I remarked, aiming my Mattock lower and shooting the pipe. It didn't detonate, but it made a hole, gas spraying out. The Speaker laughed.

"The Human cannot hit a simple target!"

"Not quite. Two shots, three kills," I responded, pulling the trigger again, the shot igniting the fuel, the explosion both engulfing the Krogan in flames, while also blasting them apart and back against the wall. I heard the speaker screaming, all but a leg blasted out of sight as the flames killed him. With that out of the way, it was a simple matter to proceed up and past them. We passed their mangled corpses, and through a hallway. Through the door at the end, this room reminded me of a hospital. A large room with a central hall, separated into three separate rooms on each side, six in total. Though not many hospitals look like they once held large, metal bulkhead doors, to the right, there was a terminal.

"Likely suitable entry point into the network. But first, may have insightful data." Mordin approached the screen, reading it over, keying in commands as he saw fit. "Genetic sequences. Hormone Mutagens still steady. Protein chains, live tissue, cloned tissue. Very thorough. Standard treatment vectors. Avoiding scorched-earth immunosuppressants to alter hormone levels. Good. Hate to see that." There's some pride in there. Of his student, or himself for his work?"

"Maybe it's just being a Salarian, but that all sounded awful casual for developing a sterility plague," I remarked., changing to a private channel between he and I.

"Not developing, modifying. Increases difficulty exponentially. Work within confines of existing Genophage. Complexity increased one-hundred fold. Errors unacceptable. Cause total sterility, malignant tumors, reduce effectiveness. Worse than doing nothing. Must keep population stable. One in one thousand. Perfect target, optimal growth. Like gardening." That comparison unsettled me. More than a bit.

"It's still the lives of kids, Mordin. Krogan or not. It's millions, billions of stillborn. Murders."

"No! Murdered no one. Altered fertility, prevented fetal development of nervous system!" Mordin argued. I think it sounded like he was repeating what he tells himself whenever the conscience comes whispering. "Have killed many before, Shepard. Multitude of methods. Guns, knives, poisons, toxins, technology. Once with farming equipment. But _not with medicine."_

"But look at what's happened to Tuchanka as a result."

"State of Tuchanka not due to Genophage. Nuclear war and winter predate first contact with Salarians."

"Not what I mean, Mordin. Maybe I should have worded it differently. Look what's happened to the Krogan. The only improvements to Tuchanka come from the Shroud, but the Krogan themselves have regressed and stagnated. Pissed off and bitter Krogan become mercs like Wrex, or the bloodthirsty ones find places like the blood pack. Or while growing up. Like the Speaker said, 'the piles of bodies of children who never lived.' A kid growing up with the females sees all those stillborn, then get told, 'they did this,' pointing up at space. They fight for Fertile females in a perpetual war for survival, and as they fight for one reason, they fight for supplies to fight with. It's a cycle. And because necessity nurtures them to be warriors, guess what? They're mostly warriors with the one in a million odds of getting the wise warrior leader that Wrex is," I argued. Mordin looked back at the screen.

"Still choices made by Krogan. Alternative decisions existed every step of the way. Genophage medical, not nuclear. No craters from Virus. Damage is Krogan in origin. Not Salarian. Not me." I sighed, it was there, I'm sure it is. The change, the realization… it's just hidden behind years of coping by shifting responsibility.

"Tali, go ahead and get EDI into the Weyrloc systems."

"Right away. Mordin? There was a body on a table in the adjacent room," she answered. Mordin took a deep breath through his nostrils. He went to investigate, and I followed. On a table in the middle of the room and with a cloth draped over, was the large body of a Krogan. A data pad had also been left on the table, which Mordin picked up while lifting the cloth by the head. The forehead, instead of housing several, layered pointed plates, was a single curved plate not unlike the current shape of Grunt's, though even on him, there are clear signs of segmentation. There's none on the female. Mordin lowered the cloth.

"Krogan. Female. Deceased." He ran his scan and checked her wrists and ankles. "Tumors indicate experimentation. No restraint marks. Volunteer. Sterile Weyrloc female willing to risk procedures. Hoped for cure. Pointless," Mordin sighed, this clearly upset him, not in anger, but sadness. "Pointless waste of life."

"After what you said about 'gardening,' I'm surprised this bothers you, Mordin." The Salarian winced.

"That is… deserved. Never experimented on live Krogan. Live subjects. Never killed with medicine. Her death not my work, only…" he looked back down at the body. "Reaction to it. Goal was to stabilize population. Never wanted this," he shook his head. This is without a doubt the most emotion I've ever seen him or any Salarian show. "Can see it logically… but still unnecessary. Foolish waste of life. Hate to see it."

"Regardless of what you did was right or wrong, you need to. Did you ever come here after dropping your… modification?"

"Yearly recon missions. Water, tissue samples. No mistakes. Can't be any mistakes. Superiors offered to carry on. My work was done. Refused. Need to see it in person. Need to look. Need to see. Yet still accept necessity. See small picture. Why I ran a clinic on Omega." Mordin took another breath and lifted his left hand over the woman's head. "Rest, young mother. Find your gods. Find someplace better." Now that certainly took me by surprise. He seemed to realize as much. "Genophage modification project altered millions of lives. Then saw results. Ego, humility, juxtaposition. Frailty of life. Size of universe. Explored religions after work completed. Different races. No answers. More questions. Unsatisfied." All right, I'll be a bit blunt again.

"You were trying to find a way to deal with your guilty conscience." Mordin continued to stare at the Krogan.

"Project great in scope. Scientifically brilliant. Morally dubious. Krogan reaction to Genophage and modification visceral. Tragic." He paused a moment. "Understandable. Not guilty, felt responsible. Trained as doctor. Genophage affects fertility. Doesn't kill. What does not live cannot die. Still caused this. Hard to see big picture behind pile of corpses."

"So you use statistics and metaphors to rationalize it away." Mordin took a deep breath again.

"Partially. Wheel of life. Popular Salarian concept. Similar to Human Hinduism, Buddhism in focus on reincarnation. Appealing to see life as endless. Fix mistakes in next life. Learn, adapt, improve. Refuse to believe life ends here. Too wasteful. Have more to offer. Mistakes to fix. Cannot end here. Could do so much more…"

"That's a lot of soul searching Mordin. A lot of hoops to jump through to see it as the right thing to do. In my time as a soldier, I've learned that the more mental gymnastics you have to do to justify something, the less justified it is."

"Had to be done. Rachni Wars, Krogan Rebellions all pointed to Krogan aggression. So many simulations… Effects of Krogan population increase. All pointed to war. Extinction. Genophage or genocide. Save galaxy from Krogan. Save Krogan from Galaxy."

"Simulations are fine and dandy for plenty of things. Combat, flying, population growth, but how an entire society develops? Things surprise you."

"Every. Potential. Outcome. Every variable. Not one showed positive outcome for cured Genophage. Saved countless lives." I stepped forward, face to face with the doctor.

"Doesn't look like you saved her." I heard him muttering under his breath as I walked past.

"Worked with available data. Only option. No other possible-" he stopped himself. "Doesn't matter…" I checked on Tali while Mordin remained by the woman.

"EDI's wreaking havoc in Weyrloc systems. All linked doors are unlocked, which will help us. Targeting of artillery cannons have been disabled or crippled, other automated defense turrets have had their targeting re-written. They'll target Weyrloc troops once the battle begins," she explained.

"Not sure if Wrex will be pleased or upset that a machine stole his kills," I remarked.

"Probably both," Tali managed a chuckle. One I shared.

"Is Wrex up to date on our progress?"

"I've already given him a call. His troops are circling the Weyrloc base, putting up the show of all their defenses being fine," she explained. I nodded my understanding, and Mordin came out from his thinking.

"All good to go?"

"Yes, there's nothing more I can do," Tali answered.

"Alright, moving out," I rallied everyone, and we got a move on. A small hallway with bits of rubble, a door on the right, hall on the left. We checked the door, seeing a dead Krogan on the ground, as well as a Krogan male sitting on the floor in a scout's attire.

"There's a lot of you… What are you doing here?"

"That depends… who are you?"

"I'm an Urdnot Scout. Weyrloc guards got me, brought me here."

"We were told about you. The guards behind us are all dead, and Urdnot's preparing to attack shortly. Might want to get back to them," I suggested.

"I can't. Weyrloc did things to me. Drugs and needles. Told me I was sacrificing for all Krogan. Experiments to cure the Genophage. Everything's…" he put a hand to his head. "Blurry. Hard to think. Have to stay."

"We can help with that. Medi-gel? Stims?"

"No, not like that. I'm not sick, I have to stay. If they're curing the Genophage, they're going to make it all better! They have to keep doing the tests!"

"Explain."

"This is my fault. I got caught, wasn't strong enough, not good enough. This is the best I can do. It's all I can do. I'm small, females won't pick me. I'll never have kids of my own. But if I help undo the Genophage, then I mattered!"

"If Weyrloc cures the Genophage, sure, they'll be millions of kids. But they'll be Weyrloc. They'll destroy Urdnot and all the clans allied with them."

"B-But… No, they said I'd be helping Urdnot!" Drill sergeant time. I've never been one, sure, but I remember my own. And I sure as hell have used it on subordinates before… hell, everything about the Normandy.

"You want to help Urdnot? Get your ass to their lines." I scoffed. "Would take a real badass to make it back to them while injured."

"I can do it." I reared my head back, shaking it.

"You?" I raised my voice. "I said a badass! Not some pansy little scout bitching like a Quarian with a belly-ache!" Shit, I'm gonna pay for that later…

"I'm standing right here, Shepard…" Tali murmured.

"I can do it!" the scout roared, then managed to stumble to his feet, a half-drunk run back along the way we came.

"Yeah… yeah, you are here, Tali…" I paused, not sure what to follow up with. "Sorry."

A brief moment passed.

Garrus broke the silence with laughter. I slowly turned to see Tali with her arms crossed, a finger tapping against her arm, and her left leg out. Shit.

Then, she broke form and began laughing herself. Followed by Kasumi, Jack, Zaeed, and Jacob. Now this surprised me. She just made me a laughingstock for the moment. And completely fooled me.

Her confidence is growing.

"Did you forget? One of my best childhood friends is a Marine Sergeant!" Tali exclaimed. "Quarian drill instructors get the _same_ exact voice. And I couldn't resist the chance to make this happen," she gestured at me.

"Can we just please move on now?" I asked. The ground shook from a relatively distant explosion.

"I think that's our cue," Garrus remarked. We got moving. Down the hall, through the door, some Krogan were hurrying along, preparing their weapons, and we caught them by surprise, so we took advantage. Our biotics, working in tandem, particularly Samara and Jack was a massive force of destruction. This 'room' was like a cell block, one built vertically, and yet, this is a hospital. Each of those 'cells' probably were once housing ill Krogan. Not sure where exactly they were going to get to the battle, though it seemed our route took us down, to the other side, and down a set of stairs. No Krogan here, probably all at the surface.

"There, Maelon should be through there," Tali pointed at a door now on the opposite, far side of the chamber. Through another thick bulkhead door, but at the end of the railing, there was a Krogan with two Varren. But Krogan have strong hearing. He knows, no doubt. As do the Varren, shown by them snarling, and immediately making their way up. Shotguns made quick work of them.

"Guld's mine," Grunt growled. "Weyrloc Guld!" Grunt shouted, mantling over the railing to the bottom of the room.

"Who the fuck are you, whelp?" Guld questioned, sure of himself.

"Urdnot Grunt. I killed the Thresher Maw in my rite of passage. I am pure Krogan. And you're meat." Guld laughed.

You're the whelp who needed aliens to do his rite for him? Ha! I am void Chosen! I am the Chief of Chiefs! When the Salarian is done, I will be Overlord of the entire Galaxy!"

"I'll feed your corpse to your own Varren," Grunt growled. The two charged each other, trying to wrestle one another to the floor. No knives or guns here, they want to prove their stronger. But Guld was not a small Krogan, he was larger than I remember Uvenk being, he's around the same height as Grunt and Wrex, in fact. The wrestling match of this sort was going nowhere quick, and they knew it. Grunt made the first move, slipping his right arm through and into a fist, giving him a swift, solid uppercut, that for a moment, sent Guld reeling, but he recovered before Grunt could capitalize further. He dodged Grunt lunging with his claws and sent a fist into Grunt's right side where the armor was thinner. The young Krogan didn't even flinch, and dropped his arm tight against himself to try and capture Guld's arm while he was in a bad position, while Grunt's right arm flew into the side of Guld's face, the fist slamming right into the Krogan's eye. He growled in pain. With the momentum of the punch and the stun of Guld, Grunt got a strong grip on Guld's arm. While his right hand took Guld by the wrist. Grunt wasted no time at all bending the arm in a very unnatural fashion, breaking it between the elbow and the wrist, the lower part of the forearm just unusable. Pain or no, muscles were certainly torn, and won't be able to make effective use of the arm. Except maybe the broken bone as a kind of shiv. Guld roared, plenty of pain. But the blood rage would start to flow. In his growing fury, Guld tried to grab Grunt with his still intact right arm, while, perhaps instinctively trying to grab him, was just slapping his arm against him. With the opening as Guld's blood rage realized his right arm was useless, Grunt took his claws, and dug them deep into Guld's left eye. Clawing and digging, before yanking out the eye and orange blood, the ocular nerve, and more than enough of the gel-like substance inside the eye itself not exactly contained anymore. Guld roared yet again in pain, and clamped his jaws down on Grunt's right shoulder. His plated. Shoulder. Chipping his teeth no doubt, meaning just more pain as he tried his damndest to bite into the softer armor along the neck itself. The left arm of Guld was manageable by Grunt. He only had one arm to deal with and his other could either keep the Chief's jaws at bay or redirect the bite to a pauldron that's several inches thick of very dense metals.

"You're pathetic, Guld!" Grunt exclaimed, no doubt grinning under his helmet. Easily able to control the broken arm with one arm, Grunt kept it still and pulled. Tearing off the arm at the broken bone, the jagged, fragmented bone and flesh bleeding orange. Grunt took the arm at the wrist, and sidestepped, Guld, who had been trying to constantly push forward staggered forward as Grunt, behind him, jammed the jagged bone into Guld's other good eye. It almost looked comical, a Krogan's own arm sticking out from his eye socket, the hand open like it was waving hello. I might be a bit sadistic. He jammed it in several times until the eye was nothing but a gory, orange mess. Guld was literally blind with fury now. But Grunt wasn't done yet. He easily broke Guld's other arm. While he struggled, it simply wasn't enough in his blind state. With Guld essentially being no threat at all, Grunt grabbed hold of the chieftain's frontal forehead plate. And pulled. And pulled. And pulled. The plate slowly began to tear off, pieces of flesh still sticking to it while in its place was a bloodied mess. As Guld roared again, Grunt took the broken arm and its jagged bone back, and clawed at the exposed skull, managing to claw his way to a grip, yanking out a piece of the bone, exposing the brain. Grunt took the bone and stabbed, Guld going limp. His own arm sticking out of his skull. Grunt released him, and he fell back onto the floor.

"That was fun." He then took a Krogan knife from his belt, and began the attempt to decapitate Guld. It would not be a fast process. "Nothing of the Maw remained to take as a trophy. Guld will do." Well.

"Let's uh… Let's go see Maelon. You have fun, Grunt." The Krogan huffed, as we moved past through the door Guld was guarding. It was another lab. Several tables, most of which with dead Krogan. A console at the end, displays, notes, readings, more than I could keep track of. But the Salarian working the large console? Different story.

"Maelon… Alive, Unharmed." Mordin murmured, removing his helmet. Maelon turning to see. Maelon was a shorter Salarian, but still as gangly. His own skin darker and far less weathered than Mordin. "Know you approached Urdnot. Still, wanted to believe Weyrloc was forcing. Don't understand…"

"For such a smart man, Professor, you always had trouble seeing evidence that disagreed with your preconceptions," Maelon accused, turning to face us. "The clan hardly matters as much as a cure!"

"Whole team agreed. Project necessary!" Mordin began to get… angry?

"And how could I ever disagree with the great Doctor Solus?" Maleon mocked. "I was your student! I idolized you!"

"Experiments performed here. Live subjects! Prisoners! Torture and executions! Your doing?!" Mordin is absolutely livid.

"We've already got the blood of millions on our hands, Doctor! If it takes a bit more to put things right, well, I can live with that more than I can of having helped in this."

"The ends don't justify the means, you can't possibly justify these experiments," I argued.

"We committed cultural genocide, Human! Nothing I ever do will ever be justified! The experiments are monstrous because that's what I was taught to be," Maelon answered.

"No," Mordin actually… snarled. Well, the Salarian equivalent of it. "Never taught you this, Maelon."

"Oh, sure, your hands are clean. Doesn't matter if the ground is stained with the blood of millions! The ends _do_ justify the means. That's what he taught me. I'll undo what we did the only way I know how."

"Have to end this," Mordin murmured. Maelon haphazardly grabbed a Carnifex at his thigh, his hands shaking.

"Can't see the truth, can you? Can't admit that your brilliant mind led you to commit an atrocity!" As Maelon's aim shifted to another, Mordin took his opportunity and slapped the Carnifex out of his former student's grip. In fear, Maelon jumped back, stumbling into a kind of tank behind the haptic screen. Mordin calmly brought his pistol against Maelon's chin.

"Unacceptable experiments. Unacceptable goals. Won't change. No choice. Have to kill you."

"Mordin!" I shouted. "Don't. You don't need to."

"But-"

"Mordin. Are you a murderer?" I asked. Mordin froze. Releasing a breath a moment later, a gasp.

"No. Not a murderer." He lowered the gun. "Thank you, Shepard." Mordin stepped back. "Finished, Maelon. Get out. No Weyrloc left. Project over."

"If you really want to help the Krogan, Maelon, help Urdnot. Wrex's way."

"And my work?" Maelon gestured at the terminal. The Salarian was still in shock at the last several seconds. "The Genophage needs to end."

"Not like this," Mordin murmured. "Thank you, Shepard."

"You alright?" I asked.

"Should have killed him. Wanted to. Easier than listening. Easier for him too, experiments indicate how far he's fallen. Expected it from Krogan. Not one of mine."

"Keep that in mind next time you think about ethics," I suggested. Obviously Mordin's little secret was out, Grunt had been listening intently, which, I'll need to thank him for his patience. The others had varying states of interest, but no disinterest.

"Yes. So many variables. Stress responses. You were correct. Impossible to truly predict. Maelon's research. Only loose end. Could destroy it. Closer, security. Still valuable though."

"Everything about his methods were abhorrent. But… Mordin, you already know what you want to do. You regret it. Sure, you see the horror of what happened here, but you see the loss."

"Wasted potential." I gestured at the dead Krogan.

"No one deserves this."

"No. No, they don't."


	45. Feast

**Commander John Shepard**

Maelon had been kept around as a prisoner while Urdnot mopped up the last of Weyrloc resistance, which hadn't taken all that long, no doubt thanks to Tali and EDI having taken over the automated defenses. During that time, Grunt had finished the process of taking Guld's head as a trophy. Sometime afterwards, Wrex had contacted us with the all clear, and both laughed and complained about Grunt being the one to put Guld in the dirt, having wanted some of that action himself. He explained that while he needed to go see Weyrloc's female clan, a Tomkah would be waiting to bring us back to Urdnot, where we would wait for Wrex's return to… have a chat with Maelon. The Salarian would be forced to wait under guard, but the rest of us would be allowed free reign to go wherever in the main compound. I would have spent some of that time taking some of the less interested crew back to the Normandy, but Wrex suggested we might want to hang around. I wandered a bit, Samara, Thane, Miranda, and Jacob waited in the shuttle, Jack, Zaeed, Grunt, and even Garrus were allowed by the Krogan to use a defense turret to keep Pyjaks away from the camp and supplies. Mordin, unwelcome as he might be, went to join in Maelon's guard, while Tali and Kasumi wandered with me.

Not all that far from Wrex's throne was a fight pit. I had assumed its use was for Krogan, but considering the fact that a pair of Varren were clawing into each other while some of the Krogan left behind cheered and jeered, it seems it has other uses. These may be Krogan, and those may be Varren, but I've always found animal pit fighting distasteful. Needless to say, we decided to keep moving. At a distance was another Krogan watching with a pale Varren with blue eyes and blue stripes lying on its stomach beside him. The Varren, while I'm not exactly an expert on their biology, appears skinnier. Some ribs slightly visible. Also curiously, unlike the rest of all the Varren we've seen here, this one wasn't leashed. The Krogan apparently noticed my curiosity, and with a rock of his head behind him, gesture for me to come over to him. Might as well. He was a merchant, made obvious by his stall and goods, and Krogan symbols painted to list price. Some crossed out and replaced by another symbol. Others, more than once.

"Human, you're Urdnot Grunt's battle master, aren't you? He and others of your crew have been killing and terrifying Pyjaks that we might not see any stealing our food for a month. I may not have much for humans, but I'll give you a deal for that," he remarked. "Name's Ratch. And that there's Urz," he gestured at the Varren who was now sitting, head cocked slightly to the side and looking at us, sniffing. 'Best trained Varren I've ever seen."

Hm. Despite being part of a vicious species with teeth sharp enough to cut through lighter armor, he certainly seems remarkably dog like. Slowly, I reached a handout to pet its head. For a moment it leaned back, a slight growl, I stopped my hand.

"Er, John?" Tali asked, less sure. Before I could respond, Urz leaned close to my hand a sniffed, then nuzzled my hand. I couldn't help but grin as I accepted the rather clear invitation to pet him more. While I obviously still had my gauntlets on, Urz didn't seem to mind. There was a kind of hissing noise, but it didn't feel aggressive. That was confirmed for me by the fact that Urz licked my hand.

"Well. I'll be damned," Ratch muttered.

"Got any food for him?" I asked.

"Er, sure. Pyjak meat, they love it. Take it," he answered, taking a slab of meat off of a hook which immediately got Urz's full attention, like a dog seeing a squirrel. Ratch handed it to me and I placed it on the ground in front of him. Urz wasted no time at all in swallowing the whole thing full. Urz stood with his mouth open, breathing. Tongue still in his mouth, but he looked happy alright. Kasumi went to pet him next and he didn't hinder her at all, yet aside from a sideways glance, Urz kept his blue eyes on me, head tilted to the side.

"A good boy, isn't he?" Kasumi remarked.

"Urz used to be a champion pit fighter until his handler got exiled. I've been keeping an eye on him since. I'm the only Krogan he lets get close, but not even that close," Ratch explained his surprise.

"Guess he likes me then," I chuckled. A few minutes later, during which we may or may not have have been around Urz my Omni-tool got a call from Wrex.

"Shepard, we're almost back to Urdnot, get at least yourself, Grunt, and that Salarian of yours to the war-room. I'll be there soon."

"On our way now," I answered. I stood and looked down over at Grunt messing with the defense turrets with Garrus, Zaeed, and Jack. "Grunt! Garrus! Wrex is almost back. Wants to meet us in the war-room."

"Have fun. I'll keep blowing shit up," Jack remarked as Grunt and Garrus started to follow. I glanced behind me towards Urz to see that he wasn't beside Ratch anymore. He was following right behind us.

"Friend of yours?" Garrus asked.

"Seems so."

Urz continued to follow, and we passed by Mordin and a pair of Krogan guarding a door on our way. I gestured for Mordin to follow, and with just a moment of hesitation, he followed into the war-room. The lot of us entered, took seats, Urz sitting on the floor beside me as we waited for Wrex. It took barely under fifteen minutes, but my old friend arrived, his armor lightly scorched, but not much else.

"Grunt, good work with Guld. A fitting first trophy," Wrex began. "Shepard letting you keep it?"

"Not to hang up on the wall of his room, but he can keep it," I answered. Wrex nodded. Then the door opened again, the two Krogan guards bringing in Maelon. He was, so far, unharmed.

"H-hello again… Clan Chief…" Maelon murmured. Wrex stared him down. He wasn't pleased.

"For all your 'good intentions' you're a fucking idiot. Weyrloc? The Clan of the Blood Pack? You told me you know your hands are stained with the blood of millions. Not only are they now stained with the blood of however many females died in your experiments, but if the Blood Pack were the ones with a cure? Tuchanka would become a shattered world with the total extinction of the Krogan on your hands," Wrex growled. Maelon opened his mouth to argue, but was cut off. "Don't, Salarian. Don't. There's much you don't understand."

"So… what now, then?" he asked.

"Shepard, you suggested he work for me under my rules, didn't you?" I nodded in response. "Count yourself lucky that Shepard is so keen on second chances, and that it's rubbed off on me. You have two choices, Salarian. Work with Fortack under my rules, maybe proving yourself to work more independently, or you can get the fuck off my planet, never to return."

"I want-I want to help," Maelon answered. Wrex looked up at the guards who had escorted him in.

"Take him to Fortack. Make sure he understands the Salarian's purpose, and that he's responsible for making sure no one guts him."

"At once." The guards turned and left the room with Maelon in tow, Wrex turned back to the rest of us.

"Now the fun part. Weyrloc's dirt. Tonight, Urdnot feasts. The lot of you better hang around to enjoy this."

What followed wasn't much more than informing the rest of the ground team that Wrex was insisting we join Urdnot's feast, and then catching up with him until the feast itself. The Krogan have a lot of meat to prepare. Wrex's delay earlier was him personally going to the Females of Weyrloc to relay the news and to invite all of Weyrloc's females to join Urdnot's as equals, including all the children that they are caring for male and female alike. Those that decline are free to leave, though Wrex himself admitted that it would be certain death. It was obvious that it troubled him, but there was little he could do about it. Fortunately, the vast majority of Weyrloc's females went along with it. They know how things are. They know there'd be no point and they don't want their children to die either. Wrex suspects that the few who rejected were either infertile or Guld's favorites.

He was much more eager to go off on the next subject; his current plans for the Krogan and what he's working on. A neutral ground, not unlike the Hollows where his father had betrayed him, but under guard. All clans are welcome, and the clans can share fertile females, strengthening the race as a whole rather than just individual clans. Naturally, the 'sharing' of the females didn't really sit right with… anyone. The women listening in even less so, as you'd expect. There were no immediate accusations, but Wrex ensured that they'd never come in the first place. The females had suggested it, and they are protected at all times. The neutral area is safe, and the protection encourages more female clans to ally with Urdnot. And by extension, the clans they are linked to find themselves with little choice but to join themselves or die a slow death.

"An attack on Urdnot endangers females of most, if not all clans. Even those that want my head on a pike will defend Urdnot. Heh, just means I need thicker armor on my backside," Wrex had explained. More on the neutral ground, clans send in 'hostages.' Temporary prisoners that are still treated fine, just not allowed to leave until the emissaries are done with their time. No fighting in the camp, and each clan punishes their own criminals. Fights are stopped before they turn lethal and the clans involved are given a choice. Pay a fine and deal with their problems, or the clan is no longer welcome. Anytime a clan becomes unwelcome, Wrex's allies quickly destroy them.

Grunt had asked why he even bothers with the weak clans, Wrex had a wise answer. Each clan has their own unique customs and cultures. Rites of passages, rules, even battle songs.

"I'm not blind to the other races. None of them are like some, singular entity. Except maybe the Batarians. They're diverse. That gives you strength of a kind. We're no different. Besides, if I did try to overwrite them all to Urdnot, I'd have few allies. That's something Wreav would do, my idiot brother. I've founded a principal for Urdnot that works rather well. If Wreav would do it, make damn sure there's not a better alternative," Wrex chuckled. "Examples. Urdnot has the best tacticians. I train them myself. Clan Jorgal has the longest breeding line, and Gatatog has the oldest settlements. All clans have their own strengths like that." Before Wrex continued, he put his focus on Grunt. What followed was clearly meant for him. "If the Krogan continue as we are, all clans, all Krogan, will either end as a scattered few unable to breed, or craters under nuclear fire. We need to rethink and restart."

"And how has all that gone so far?" Garrus asked.

"Better than I feared, worse than I hoped," Wrex shrugged. "Technically, I'm at the head of the largest united front. Practically, I still have strong opposition. Traditionalists. Old clans. Strong clans. Chained Varren guarding their pathetic little stick in the sand. Those clans often fight one another. If Urdnot goes after any as an individual clan, we might be able to chip away at them. If I rally all my allies? I'll push them together and that war would kill us before the Genophage could. I need to take my time, play this right. Whether that's taking their females out from under them, convincing the heirs of those clans, or go after them the old fashioned way."

"So, bloodshed either way," I remarked.

"I won't change what we are. Krogan are judged by the strength of our enemies. The worst insult any Krogan can give is to tell someone they aren't worth killing." Garrus thought that sounded quite Krogan.

Meanwhile, the whole time Urz had stayed by me, though laying down for what I'd assume to be a nap relatively quickly. But then it was my turn to talk. Tali had begun to wring her hands, knowing what was coming. Garrus was unfazed, having already come to terms with what happened, accepting it. So I pulled Tali in a little closer to rest my hand on her knee, squeezing it. That wasn't lost on Wrex, as hidden as it might have been. He let out a huff on his breath, a slight nod at me as I began.

"The long and short, Wrex? I died with the Normandy. A blast cut off my air supply and I would have suffocated as I plummeted to Alchera's surface from orbit. We found my old helmet when we were there recently. That thing was made of miracles. Kept my brain intact for everything that followed. Some point along the way, my body got picked up by arguably the last people you'd expect."

"Your Fanclub and that Conrad guy?" Wrex asked. Semi-serious. I think.

"No, but that actually might have been worse. Much worse," I chuckled before getting serious again. "Fucking Cerberus."

"Well you're standing here, and you'd off yourself if they tried to brainwash you or some shit."

"Right you are. I only woke up about… a little over a month ago in a lab or medical facility. Skipping some details, Cerberus explained that the Collectors were abducting entire Human colonies for the Reapers, and that they believed I was humanity's best hope. Either as a symbol or a soldier or… both. Took a trip to Freedom's Progress and found both proof and Tali. She couldn't join then but arranged to do so later, while the leader of Cerberus, the Illusive Man, made me a deal that I'm still sure is going to bite me in the ass. Take a ship, crew, funding, intel, and go stop the abductions. Officially, my only condition is to leave their operations alone. Since then, I've met with both the Council and the Alliance. I have my Spectre status back and the Alliance just recently reinstated me. Neither can really do much beyond that, and in part that's thanks to my temporary alliance." Wrex didn't bat an eye.

"So your crew's all Cerberus then? The humans, at least?"

"Technically. Apparently, the majority of them were new recruits taken from the Alliance or colonies since my death. They don't know a whole lot while others feel like they owe Cerberus something. I'm working on them. Loyalties are changing," I shrugged. "Speaking of the Council, though, Anderson wishes you luck. And says that if you ever need anything brought before the Council, go through him."

"That's appreciated. I might see if he can have the patrol fleets stop any shuttles heading to Tuchanka for the next week or so. Blood Pack will be looking for revenge and I'd rather save the anti-air shells for other clans." Before long, Wrex lead us down to one of the feast halls, mentioning that he sent for the rest of the team to be escorted to the hall as well. Wrex mentioned that it wasn't the only feast hall, but it's one for him, his inner circle, the Chiefs of any allied clans brought to battle and their inner circle, as well as chosen warriors who did well in the battle. There's a lot of Urdnot to fit into one hall after all. And Urz was still following, but Wrex didn't seem to mind.

"Sorry in advance Tali, Garrus. The closest thing to Dextro food you could ever find on Tuchanka is dead Turian, and Urdnot doesn't stockpile that," Wrex remarked on our way. It's not likely he's joking.

"Well. That's what MREs are for," Garrus answered, fidgeting slightly. Wrex chuckled. We came to another door that opened for Wrex, and immediately the smell of cooked meat and smoke filled the air. "Some of it's toxic to non-Krogan. Try not to eat anything marked by a Krogan head. And _**don't**_ drink the Ryncol." It seems that Wrex was the first to enter, likely as custom, and his seat was clearly the large one at the center of a raised table looking over the hall and spits in the center, cooking Pyjaks and other slabs of meat over a fire. There were some other large seats along the table but more on the shorter end, and in front of every seat at every table was a large stein filled with Ryncol about the size of a small barrel. The only exceptions behind the seats for us.

"Shepard, Garrus, Tali, Grunt. You'll find your seats up there by me. Rest of you will have to take seats down here."

"Someone has favorites," Kasumi remarked.

"Bah, once things actually get going you can go wherever the fuck," Wrex shrugged as he went and took his seat. He took his seat, we took ours, and moments later came more Krogan. The first was a female in the colors of Urdnot, her forehead plate grey with red paint.

"These your old friends, Wrex?" she asked, moving to take her seat by him.

"Uta," Wrex nodded. Next was the rest of our crew followed by three more Krogan, males, with the colors black, blue, and orange. "Bragus Trax, Ravenor Halak, and Nakmor Srarm." The chiefs of the allies called for. Then following was two females, only the colors of black and blue, no Orange. And since Orange was Nakmor, I suppose they just haven't gotten a new replacement for their female clan leader. "Bragus Dakaro, Ravenor Tekari." Then several groups of Krogan of all the clan colors. The names of their squads didn't translate. Seats were all taken and it was remarkably silent to start with. Wrex stood, taking his drink in hand, raising it.

"To Victory!" Wrex shouted, and downed his drink all in one swig. The other Krogan copied him, in word and action. Once all had finished, they all slammed their drinks back down on their tables.

"Korbal!" The Krogan shouted together, then stomped their right foot on the ground twice. That was when the feast began.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

The hall was covered in Krogan bodies. And none of them were dead. Though they certainly weren't far from it. Meanwhile, Jack had ignored the warnings of both Wrex and Zaeed against drinking Ryncol, and considering the fact that not twenty seconds later she had collapsed face first into a table? Yeah, she'll be paying for it. Wrex, unsurprisingly, had kept his consciousness, knowing we'd be leaving at the end of the evening.

"Shepard, it's good to have you back. I just wish I could go with you, but now I have the clans to keep in line. Try not to get killed again."

"No promises. But, just in case…" I pulled out my Omni-tool and copied a rather sizeable file to Wrex. Maelon's research data. It was marked as such. Wrex took a glance, and then clasped me by the forearm.

"When they come, whenever that might be, the Krogan will stand at your side, Shepard. We'll send them all screaming back to the void."

"And I, by yours," I responded, the clasp releasing as Tali got her turn.

"I know better than to ask anyone to keep him out of trouble. So I'll tell you this instead. Stay by him. He'll punch a fucking Reaper to keep you safe. Make sure he doesn't have to," Wrex chuckled, ruffling Tali's realk again.

"Always," she smiled, taking my hand.

"Fleshies," Wrex scoffed, chuckling.

"Terribly disgusting, isn't it?" Garrus remarked. "Mammals. So mushy."

"Ha! I wish Uvenk was still alive to see me agree with a Turian," Wrex laughed. The two shared the same farewell that Wrex did with him. "Try not to take another rocket to the face Vakarian. It's not going to make you any less ugly. And besides, I like knowing there's at least one Turian out there worthy of my respect."

"Same goes to you, Wrex. You go, the Krogan go. Sooner or later."

"Count on it." With the farewell given, we gathered the crew and carried the unconscious few, Grunt and Jack, though the former was dragged along, all towards the shuttle. We secured them, and I was about to go for the cockpit of the shuttle when I heard a whimpering behind me. Outside the shuttle, sitting, head to the side, was Urz.

"This is about to really happen, isn't it?" Garrus asked no one in particular as I couldn't help but grin.

"Come on Urz, come on boy," I called, patting my leg. Urz quickly stood, straightening his head, and happily trotted on board the shuttle.

"Really? Shepard?" Miranda asked, exasperated. I just ignored her as Urz followed me into the cockpit and we took off towards the Normandy.


	46. Unmasked

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: You can guess what happens here, but there's no smut in this chapter. Also, sorry it's short, but I hope it's sweet. School's been busy and I'm working on getting a job. Next chapter should have more content. Oh and if you're in my Discord server, I'll post a reference image for Tali. If you want to see, send me a message and I'll get you into the server. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

On our way back to the Normandy I had given Wrex a call despite having just left him as I had forgotten to mention something to him. The Krogan statues we had found at Hock's vault, and that if he wants those returned, he should make the formal request to Anderson soon. Wrex figured that so long as the statues can remain intact somewhere in Urdnot that isn't a storage closet, it might build some trust for Urdnot with the Council, so he agreed. And as the shuttle came to a landing in the Normandy's shuttle bay, another thought came to mind.

Where the hell are we going to keep Urz? I know he can eat the same food Grunt will, meat, and I'll ask Mordin later if there's any limits as to what a Varren can safely eat, but then what about messes? We don't exactly have a backyard. I guess we can just fabricate some diapers for him. I'm sure that would be dangerous to work with at all. Maybe not…

Gardner is going to need a raise.

"Um… John? Is Urz going to be staying in your room?" Tali asked as everyone began to leave the shuttle. Some, like Miranda, Thane, Samara, Mordin, and Grunt were acting like he didn't exist, or just entirely unfazed. Jacob, Zaeed, and Garrus were enjoying the show. Jack was still knocked the fuck out from drinking Ryncol. And that's honestly unfortunate, and, I can't believe I'm saying this, she would actually be a good candidate I think to hold onto Urz overnight now. As subtle and small as the changes might be about her, I think an animal might do her some good.

"No, no, no," I stammered. This isn't the time or place to reveal to her the changes to my quarters. Changes that a Varren would further complicate. Maybe before we go to sleep. Zaeed should do for tonight. "Zaeed! Think you could take Urz for tonight? I want to try and have Jack take him when she's not slammed into next year."

"He's your-eh… right. Guess that would make shit difficult for ya," he answered, glancing at Tali as he cut himself off. "Alright, fine. He's glued to your hip though, so you gotta bring em to my room. And I'm not cleaning up after the fucker."

"Wasn't asking you to. Thanks." I turned back to Tali. "Why don't you head on up? I'll uh… I'll explain up there." Tali tilted her head curiously.

"Er, sure. Sure." With Urz, I followed Zaeed to his room. The Varren began looking and sniffing around, a passing interest in the old Blood Pack helmet trophy Zaeed had but turned back to me. I got down on a knee and scratched behind where his ear should be. Urz's mouth opened in his own quieter version of panting.

"Agh, bloody hell," Zaeed murmured, knowing he's gonna need to have Urz's attention long enough for me to leave. He started to pet and scratch at Urz as well and the Varren was allowing it, at least for now. Zaeed started to scratch around his belly, and that got Urz's attention, and fortunately, in a positive way. Urz got to the ground and onto his side. I took the opportunity to leave and made my way up to my quarters. Nothing wrong with the decon unit, Tali must be waiting inside the room itself. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door to my quarters, seeing Tali pacing, her mind no doubt running through a million and one possibilities as to what I have to explain. She stopped, hearing me enter, turning her focus to me.

"What do you have to explain, John?" she asked, hands wringing in front of her. I paused a moment, mouth open not quite sure how to explain, when a better idea came to mind.

"Might be better to show you," I answered, gesturing for her to come my way, back to the decon chamber, though she didn't know it by that name. She was clearly still confused, the blue light from the fish tank illuminating her slightly. The door closed behind her and I pulled up my Omni-tool so that the decon can finally start doing its thing. The cleaning chemicals began to spray as the decon field began to warm up, I knew that the same was happening in my quarters themselves. Tali stopped right in her tracks, freezing, save for when she stared at me, glowing eyes wide open.

"Surprise," I gave a shy grin.

"W-When did you do this?"

"Mordin helped me install it last time we were on the Citadel."

"Wait, that long ago? When you asked me to… move in with you? Why didn't you tell me?" Her surprise was obvious, but I wasn't sure if she was upset, I didn't tell her sooner or understanding.

"Well…" I chuckled, my nerves getting to me. "I was nervous. I was afraid that asking you to move in with me and then I just… immediately let you know afterwards that I have a decon unit would either make implications or expectations I didn't want to give. Honestly, I was hoping to wait until you were comfortable enough here suggest the next step yourself to reveal it was already here." Tali paused again.

"Why?"

"Because I refuse to let… this, us, go anything faster than your pace. And I know you read into things often. Like I said, I was afraid of you thinking that you _had_ to do something instead of _wanting_ to."

"John…" she smiled under her mask. I knew she was. I just knew. She immediately wrapped me in a hug, her head on my shoulder. The process finished, perhaps taking longer considering this is the first time it has run. Taking me by the hand she pulled me along into my room, running a scan with her Omni-tool.

"It's clean…" she murmured under her breath, then turned back to me. "John, it's actually clean," her tone was that of nervous excitement. And it was contagious. That all being said, I knew I was the only thing that didn't count as clean for her scanner in here. I probably never would, but I've been taking steps. Just in case, since I never really know when Tali might give me a reason to let this particular cat out of the bag, I've been using a special mouthwash and soaps every day. It'll never be perfect, but I can get as close as I can. Tali's eyes wandered across the room. I wonder what she was thinking, how differently she was perceiving the room now that it was a clean room. She sat down on my bed, looking down, thinking. I sat beside her, and a moment later, she turned to look at me again.

"I want-no. John," she took hold of my hand. "I need you to see me. And I need to see you without this damned visor. To feel your skin on mine." Ok… um, wow. John, remember to breathe. Breathing is an important thing to do, keep doing it.

"A-are you sure? You don't have to now if you're not ready."

"This may be… the most terrifying thing I've ever done in my life, but, yes, John. I'm sure. I've wanted to do this for so long. And to help with your concerns?" Tali took a deep breath. "The only thing keeping me from going… all the way, is that I haven't begun to take the medications I'll need for that." Well shit.

Right, breathing. I forgot there for a moment.

"Then will it be-be safe for you tonight?" Tali keyed her Omni-tool in response.

"I've just had my suit give the immunoboosters and antibiotics in case a shot pierces my suit. I'll still be a little sick, but nothing like Illium. So long as it doesn't stay off that long."

"Ok… Can I… take the visor off?" yeah that feels very awkward.

"I… might have hoped you'd ask," Tali managed a giggle. Tali helped guide my fingers to a release switch by her forehead and at the corners of the visor itself. The switches themselves were small, and designed so that it was impossible to open them on accident. There was a hiss of air as the seal was broken. I began to lift when she stopped me.

"Wait, not just the visor. The vocalizer was technically still active, but I could hear her without it now as well. Her voice was the same, just without the hint of synthetics. The mask loosely remained in place while she guided me to some similar latches at the base of her helmet. By the throat and back of her neck. They were identical to the ones used to release the visor, and it too came loose, but without the hiss, as the seal for the head was already broken. Tali pulled back her realk, and lowered her head to make taking if off easier. I noticed that the cables and pumps attached to the back were disconnecting automatically since the helmet was. Keeping my eyes on the mask itself for a moment I lifted it off, hearing Tali take a deep breath as I put the helmet down gently to my side opposite of Tali, and turned back to her.

Wow.

Her skin was a pale grey color. I wonder if the pale is more of a somewhat natural coloration for Quarians or the result of several generations being robbed of sunlight for their entire lives. Her lips were a darker coloration, maybe a mix between… a darker grey and purple? She managed a smile, her teeth a perfect white. Her canines were further apart than in humans, as if they traded places with the tooth behind them, and they were also a little longer than a human's, and they appeared to have a little bit of serration as well. The rest of the teeth I could see looked similar enough to humans. Her nose was the same button nose I've caught hints of through the visor before, no surprises with that. The eyes themselves were just barely noticeably larger than a Humans, while the iris was both a bright, glowing white and clearly larger than that of a human. Obviously, the source of the bioluminescence. In contrast, the sclera, like the pupils, were black. She had eyebrows, black in color but her hair itself was a silver white. Like the eyes, it also shined just slightly, though I figured that was more from reflecting light than any bioluminescence. It was short, very short. A result of her wearing her helmet all her life, but I remembered how she told me about her mother and their relationship, how she would help Tali care for her hair to keep it healthy, but still, the length didn't reach her shoulders, and at the front if barely covered any of her forehead. Finally, she also had a few freckle like features along her cheeks and forehead, but were longer and larger than freckles. There were only a few of them, but despite the semblance of a pattern to them, I highly doubt those aren't a natural feature.

I thought she looked ethereal. Simultaneously alien, but not.

"W-Well? What do you… think?" Gently, I raised my hand and cupped her cheek, rubbing under her eye with my thumb. She gasped as I touched her face, then hummed as I rubbed, smiling. Her skin felt, as cliché as it sounds, smooth as silk, and incredibly soft. It's like how you can tell if someone physically works hard by how rough the skin on their hands are, being worn down by physical labor and exposure. Obviously, her body has next to no exposure, and hard work wears on the suit instead of her.

"I think we'll need to do this more often." Tali raised her right hand and worked at the seals around her forearm, removing the 'glove.' Her hand was naturally the same color, the two fingers long and about the width of two human fingers stuck together, the thumb proportionate. I could see nails, but without any length past the finger, and they were far narrower. Pointed. When they get to grow, they can probably get rather sharp. Hesitantly, Tali mirrored me, putting her hand on my cheek and feeling me, my beard. She chuckled.

"It tickles." She then moved her hand back and to my own, taking hold of it, just like we have before. But this time without a suit separating our hands. Smiling, we stared into one another's eyes again. Maybe thirty seconds passed, I wasn't really keeping track.

Then she launched herself at me.


	47. Distress

**AUTHOR'S NOTE Hey guys. Sorry about the delay and sorry about any lax of quality. My dog has started having seizures recently, two total so far and just last night did we get medications for her. Needless to say it has not been leaving me in the best of moods for writing. Anyways, hope you enjoy.**

 **Commander John Shepard**

I woke up the following morning with a smile on my face and pleasant dreams through the night. Not to mention the undoubtedly beautiful woman sleeping beside me. Her eagerness had surprised me. And either she had done some research, or kissing isn't that alien of a concept. I couldn't exactly keep track of how long we were at it, but it didn't last long enough. Tali clearly felt the same, her disappointment obvious as she reluctantly backed off to put her mask and glove back on. To reassure her as she was sealed off from me, I smiled and said "Thank you." I knew she smiled in return, and I could picture it perfectly as we took to our rest. Unfortunately, after waking up, the smiles wouldn't last long. With the Normandy's shield tech no longer being her focus, she had been able to focus on decrypting and analyzing that Eclipse data pad back from when we recruited Samara. And overnight, the program had finished. And who would have thought? She was transported to Omega.

First order of business today, have Joker set a course for Omega. That was easy enough, and took care of it on my way for the second order of business. That being fetch Urz, and go see Jack. Third would be to talk to Samara, let her know. I took the elevator down with Tali in a comfortable silence, just leaning on one another. She got off on the crew deck so she could eat and go to Chakwas for some cold medication. Nothing major, but she had sneezed quite a few times already. I continued on to engineering, finding Urz asleep at the foot of Zaeed's cot. Well, I figured he was asleep, because while his eyes were wide open, he didn't react to me entering aside from stirring slightly at the noise. Zaeed was still asleep, snoring loudly. With Urz stirring, he began to wake, only then realizing I was there before shooting up, and quickly trotting over to sniff at me. I pet him, and led him out of Zaeed's room and down to Jack.

"Jack?" I called out as I walked down the steps.

"Fuck ya want, Shep?" Jack called back casually. Right, biotics don't get hangovers.

"Remember the Varren I picked up?"

"You brought him with us? Hmph," she was smirking as I turned the corner, seeing her sitting on her table. "Bet that got on Cheerleader's nerves." Urz came around as well and studied Jack from a distance at first. "What about him?"

"I can't keep him up in my quarters, thought you might enjoy having a pet overnight."

"Dog Sitting? Me? Really?" Jack laughed, and Urz started to step closer, sniffing at her.

"Just overnight. Besides, thought it might be good for you. And a Varren is a helluva lot more your speed than a poodle."

"Damn right," Jack remarked, noticing Urz right by her. Probably in spite of herself, she started to pet him. "What's his name again?"

"Urz. So?" Jack was quiet a moment, giving Urz some attention.

"Yeah, alright, fine."

"Thanks. I'll give you two some time to get to know each other. Besides, I need to talk to Samara."

"Yeah, sure." She paused. "Whatever." I took my leave. She's trying to hide it. Not well, but trying. I made my way up to the crew deck, and instead of in her room meditating, Samara was getting some breakfast. Some sort of breakfast salad by the looks of it. Also eating were Tali, Garrus, Miranda, Thane, Jacob, Kasumi, and Grunt. As well as Ken, Gabby, Kenn, Lia, Chakwas, Kelly, and other various crew. Nods and good mornings were exchanged as I went to go get a little breakfast bar.

"Samara," I began after the first bite. "Found your target."

"Please, wait for me in observation. I will join you shortly," she answered. I nodded, finished my bar, and waited for her as she asked. Before long, the door to observation opened, Samara stepping through and towards the viewport. "Where has she fled?" she asked, staring out into the void.

"Omega. Unsurprisingly. Strangely enough, the lone passenger that Eclipse were smuggling on their ship. And extra security, but for themselves. And the entire crew specifically picked to only be attracted to men. I'm not sure why they'd be that specific. Just who is this 'Morinth?'"

"That is the name she goes by now? I see. It is vital that she be apprehended before she disappears again."

"This seems more deeply rooted than a professional sense of duty," I remarked.

"She has been my focus for over four-hundred years. It is the most important task of my life, and the reason I became a Justicar."

"Well. Shit," I murmured. "Good news is that we're already en route. But just what are we dealing with here?" Samara continued to gaze out into space.

"She is an Ardat-Yakshi. I do not expect you to recognize the term. The Asari public treats it as a dark secret. The terminology comes from an ancient and long dead Asari dialect. A Demon of the night winds. The mythology aside, she is a very dangerous woman who kills without mercy."

"This breed of serial killer wouldn't have such a unique name unless they shared some unique method. What makes an 'Ardat-Yakshi' so special?"

"An Ardat-Yakshi suffers from a rare genetic disorder that is only possible among pure-blooded Asari. And even then, the likelihood without a family history is approximately one percent. When an Ardat-Yakshi mates, there is no gentle melding of nervous systems. They overpower their victims, hemorrhaging the brain. The victims are left a mindless shell, dying soon after," Samara explained. Well, holy fucking shit that is rather scary. The most sexualized race in the galaxy that have serial killers who kill through sex.

"Well… this is news to me. Then, are all Ardat-Yakshi serial killers? Or…?"

"The gene manifests with maturity, and early detection is extremely rare, even by the standards of the Ardat-Yakshi themselves. Most are only discovered after their first attempt to mate. The first death is never intentional. Nonetheless, they are given a choice. Live in seclusion and comfort in one of the several remote Ardat-Yakshi monasteries, or die, as they have shown their addiction to the surge of ecstasy that they receive from killing their mates. There is no redemption for such a person.

"Addiction?"

"Yes. Of the Ardat-Yakshi who escape and continue killing, some have been found dead, overdosed on Hallex or other such narcotics. Most others are still addicted. The rush they feel from killing is similar to the rush provided by those narcotics. Further, their biotic strength increases. The more they kill, the more they need to kill. It is widely believed that stories of Asari devil figures have in fact been Ardat-Yakshi than went unchecked well into their Matriarch years."

"Then why are they so obscure?"

"As I just hinted, when our race was young, Ardat-Yakshi were fascinating. Some cultures worshipped them as gods of destruction. Now the Asari have their place in the Galaxy. Considering how strongly this position is reinforced through sexual charms and behaviors, they do not wish for this defect to be widely known. Directly, I only know of three that exist today. I know more live in monasteries, but I do not know how many. Two of the three chose a life of seclusion. The third ran. And I am sworn to kill her."

"And I am very inclined to help with that." Samara nodded, glancing back at me. Her face stoic as always.

"She confuses her victims, twists their feelings. They will do anything for her favor," she warned. "And there is one final thing, Shepard. This… monster, that I hunt? She is my daughter."

Well. Shit.

"I… I am at a complete loss for words, Samara. I'm sorry, though that hardly seems like enough."

"Spare me the pity, Shepard. I want none, and accept none. I grieved long ago. I am responsible for her murders, and my redemption lies in ending them. I own nothing, and I claim nothing. My other two daughters chose seclusion. And now my purpose is to destroy my own child." Jesus… all three of her daughters are Ardat-Yakshi?

"Help me find my long lost daughter, Shepard. And kill her."

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

It had been two days since I had shown my face to John. Two days since my first kiss. Keelah do I still feel amazing. Despite the cold. It was worth it. I think the crew was gossiping, at least some of them assuming more had happened than actually did. And I surprisingly didn't care. Besides, Gabby would shut Ken up for me. Regardless, we were still en route to Omega, though our route was taking us through the Hades Nexus. But what's strange is that John has just called myself, Garrus, Grunt, Mordin, and Samara to prepare for a ground op and report to the shuttle, and that Mordin should bring extra dextro based medical supplies. The most I can figure out about what's going on, is that after we had entered the Hades Nexus, we remained in normal space longer than normal, and the ship turning when we should have already been facing the next relay, then entering FTL again. We only just returned to real space. While FTL goes through engineering for us to actually engage it, we don't have navigation down here. We know if we're moving and how fast, but we're completely blind as to where unless we ask or are informed. And as far as real space is concerned, pilot can directly control speed and turning and such at will, while we make sure enough power gets where it is needed, and in the most severe of emergencies, such as a maneuver that would, without doubt, cause a critical overload, we can countermand such a maneuver by redirecting power. Though Joker would never give us a reason to do so.

I arrived at the shuttle, armed and ready for combat alongside the others requested. John, naturally, was already waiting, fully prepared himself. He began to explain.

"Shortly after coming out of Relay transit here in the Hades Nexus, we picked up a distress call bouncing around the comm buoys. It's about two days old, and Quarian in nature." Two days? That's not a good sign. Unless it's as simple as them being stranded, they would, in all likelihood, be dead or worse already. "Considering that we're in the Terminus systems, and close to the Perseus Veil at that, there are no emergency services in the cluster, and the beacon isn't marked as having a response en-route. Even pirates do that to claim a score. Unfortunately, the signal itself doesn't tell us much. Only that a Lieutenant Farzan vas Idenna, pilot of the scout ship Cyniad, is requesting immediate assistance before cutting to static, and the coordinates pointed to the planet we're orbiting right now. Gei Hinnom. EDI has already performed a scan and confirmed the presence of a crashed Quarian ship. However, considering the region they landed in is lush, results are inconclusive, other than that there is more than local flora present. While no one's responding to our hails, with luck, this will be nothing more than landing, letting survivors aboard, and making sure they get home safe to the Idenna."

"But it's never so simple, hence having us around. Just in case," Garrus remarked.

"Naturally. And if we do have to fight anyone or anything off of the Quarians, I want Mordin administering first aid as needed, while Samara, I want you to keep them all alive. Probably a barrier. Let's go." We quickly boarded and took off towards the surface. I can't help but fear for my people. And these are survivors of the Idenna. The ship Cerberus boarded. If they're ok, I wonder how bad of an idea it would be to have them recount their memories of the attack. For the hesitant crew and Lawson. Though that might have to be done without explaining the full truth of the ship.

"We've broken atmo. Scans are picking up a camp below. Got a landing zone, but no sign of anyone yet," John called out. The fact that they were able to set up camp at least is a good sign. "We're being hailed on short range. Letting you all in on the transmission.

"Thank the Ancestors! We've lost over half of our survivors to a large pack of Varren! They know we're here, a-a-and I think they're coming for the rest of us. Hurry!" a female voice pleaded. Damn it all, why can't things ever just go ok?

"We've locked onto your signal. Get out in the open, and we'll land beside you. Don't waste a damned second hopping aboard," Shepard ordered.

"This is Tali'Zorah vas Neema. Listen to him, we'll get you back to the Idenna safely," I added to reassure them.

"O-ok. Hurry," she answered. We could hear gunfire through her response.

"Grunt, Garrus, at the sides of the doors. Shoot any Varren making a go for anyone," Shepard ordered. "Samara, quite literally, give anyone who needs it a lift to stay safe."

"The Quarians shall lose no more this day, Commander," Samara replied. Garrus and Grunt got in position, and Samara glowed blue in anticipation. Moments later, the shuttle slowed as the door opened, a rough, rapid landing. It was a jungle environment, and there were several freshly dead Varren and torn tents. And a Quarian body with bite marks at the shoulder and claw marks streaking down its back. I don't know if they're alive or dead, but they won't be left behind. The survivors, six of them, hopped in but the Varren were starting to charge, not wanting their prey to escape. Several were being gunned down, and another was going for the body. Not if I can help it. I tossed Chatika out of the shuttle and barged out, shotgun in hand, killing the Varren going for the body, while Chatika formed, set to defend me.

"Tali! What are you-" Garrus called out. "Damn it, I'm coming to help." I started picking up the body, a woman's, Chatika zapping a Varren that got close while Grunt shot others, Garrus firing twice as he ran to join me. With his off hand, he helped pick the body up, and we ran back to the shuttle. Chatika right behind me, deforming and returning to my belt as we returned. Garrus banged on the door to the cockpit and the shuttle doors closed. Mordin was ready immediately to examine just in case she is alive. I wasn't focused on feeling for breathing, just getting her in the shuttle. We laid her on the floor, stomach down so that the wounds can be addressed quickly as Mordin ran his scan, one of the surviving men with the same clan pattern tried to get close to help.

"Stay back. Suits may have contagion. Subject alive, immune system and body in shock. Must work quickly. Get to medical bay." Mordin stated, before applying medi-gel to the wounds, both from the claws along her back to the bite on her shoulder.

"Are there any other survivors?" John questioned through the speakers.

"We don't know," a woman, with the patterns of clan Farzan answered. "Doubtful. That was our only camp and the Varren picked off our scouting parties. When we called them back, they tried to take them out. There weren't that many of us to begin with," she answered. John was silent a moment.

"Understood. When we're back on our ship, we'll help you get in contact with the Idenna." Shepard began the return to the Normandy while Mordin worked to stabilize the wounded member of clan Yemos. The medi-gel was applied followed by an emergency suit sealant.

"Tali, help turn patient onto back." I did as the doctor requested. Her frontside appeared unharmed. She seemed to be barely breathing. "Emergency blood transfusion required. Tali, retrieve blood bag from medical pack. F negative. Will suffice." I found it easily enough, handing it over to Mordin while he expertly found and inserted the transfusion into the suit's injection port. The bag would automatically regulate the flow of new blood, allowing us to focus on helping her. "Administering immunoboosters." Moments passed and we were nearing the ship. Chakwas was waiting to rush her to the med-bay, but Mordin spoke up again. "Decreasing heart rate. Administering cetophene to counter." I think the human equivalent is called Adrenaline. That kept her stable until we landed, and that will put an end to my own helpfulness with that matter. The shuttle doors opened, Chakwas rushing out of the elevator with a medical gurney. The patient was quickly helped onto said gurney, Chakwas and Mordin took the Gurney up the elevator first, allowing the other member of Yemos to join them. The other survivors wanted to at least wait outside the med-bay while we got them in contact with the Idenna. We took it once it had finished the first journey, though Grunt waited as he just wanted to go back to his room. We took seats outside the med-bay in the mess, John sitting across from Forzan, and myself beside him.

"Thank you, Human, for saving us. However, I only know the name of your compatriot, Tali'Zorah. You are?"

"Commander John Shepard. Welcome to the Normandy. I wish it could be under better circumstances."

"Yes, we heard of your exploits during the Geth invasion." John simply nodded before proceeding.

"What brought you out here?"

"The Cyniad is-was, a scout ship for the Idenna. While the Idenna departed from the fleet to scout for suitable planets. Unfortunately, we're close to the veil, and were targeted by Geth. They shot us down, but didn't follow us planet side. And our Captain, unfortunately, did not survive."

"My condolences. How can we see about getting you in contact with the Idenna?"

"We had a rendezvous in the Phoenix Massing. Unfortunately, we would have missed it by now. Fortunately, they would have left an additional scout ship there in case we were late, while sending a smaller one to investigate the buoys for any distress signals."

"Then we'll set course for the Phoenix massing immediately. It's only the next cluster over, and on our way regardless," John answered.

As the course was set, the surviving crew began to settle in. Several starting to fall asleep. Hours later, Chakwas stepped out of the med-bay.

"Casu'Yemos is stable, at least for now. Her wounds are cleaned and closed, her suit sealed, her blood levels normalized, and given as many immunoboosters as is safe. However, a resuscitation was required, and we cannot be sure if her body will fight off the infection. She will be safe to transfer whenever it is necessary."

"Thank you, Doctor," Farzan stated, tired herself, keeping awake because of the weight of responsibility, I'm sure.

"Commander," Joker spoke over the intercom. "We've arrived at Phoenix Massing. There's a Quarian ship here, alright. The Lieutenant might want to do the talking, though," he remarked. Naturally, Quarian ships do have to be cautious, especially in Terminus.

"Come on, let's get you home."


	48. Monster

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Bit of a throwback to chapter 30 of ITGU with the name of this chapter huh? Anyways, I have a question for y'all. Is there ANYONE, anyone at all out there, that genuinely thinks it is more morally sound to save Morinth than it is to kill her? If there is, what is your/their reasoning. I genuinely want to know and try to understand. I won't agree, but hey, espescially as a writer, knowing other perspectives can only help. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

With the use of the airlocks, the Normandy and the Quarian ship had connected, though naturally, our ships would not be exchanging any atmosphere. Bit risky for Quarians. Nonetheless, we transferred Casu over to their own medics first, followed by the other survivors. Pleasantries were exchanged with the Captain and thanks given, as well as being told that I should be expecting a message from the Idenna before too long. But another day had passed, and we were now at Omega. And surprisingly, we were still allowed a premium docking. Not for free this time, but certainly at price. And hey, it's Cerberus' credits. And considering what we're here for? Kinda feel like I should start calling myself Van Helsing. At the moment, we were still pulling into dock, so I had gone to see Samara. She's been hunting this, Morinth, for centuries, and should know the best ways to catch her on our terms. She was, like always, meditating, though she had closed the viewport as to not look upon Omega.

"Shepard," she greeted.

"How are we doing this?"

"First we require a lead. She has no doubt fed since arriving here. I am unfamiliar with Omega, save by reputation, and will trust you to find a means to learn of strange brain hemorrhage deaths. Once we have a lead, we will investigate the victims, their belongings, correspondence, to discern her hunting grounds. From there, we will require bait. And if I am seen, she will go into hiding for years at best. I'm afraid you will be the best choice to be her bait. Your strong will and awareness of what she is will keep you safe. Ideally, you will seduce her, and she will bring you to her home. I will follow, and kill her."

"Just like that?"

"If it all goes to plan. We should travel in minimal numbers, there will be no firefights."

"Then I'll just bring Garrus. His experience as a detective should help us out."

"Very well."

"Now, just how do I seduce Morinth?"

"You already exude an aura of power and strength. That will attract her, but not be what makes her take the bait. She has always maintained two interests as I've hunted her. Adventure, rather, the dangers of it, and art. Morbid art, specifically. With luck, the investigation will uncover more specifics. Whether that's new interests, or specific names of artists she appreciates." Samara then stood, and turned to face me. "If there are no further questions, I shall prepare to conceal myself. Go wait with Garrus Vakarian outside the ship. I will join shortly." I nodded and left her to prepare, nabbing Garrus to head out.

"Samara's criminal, right?" he had asked.

"Simply put? Asari serial killer. Kills through Asari mind melding from a rare genetic defect. And, try not to ask or say too much, it's her daughter," I explained quickly and quietly. Garrus said nothing, not needing to. He understood and could keep his composure. "What we need from you is some old fashioned detective work."

"Shouldn't be a problem." With that, we waited by the airlock, eventually finding Samara approaching us wearing some raggedy looking hooded robes. Enough to make her look like a pauper. Though she'll stand out in Afterlife.

"Where shall we begin our search?" Samara asked.

"Aria," I stated. "She's the closest thing Omega has to a, well, let's say Queen pin. More or less because that's exactly what she is. Simply taking a look at death reports will take forever to sort through, it's Omega after all. But considering who Aria is, how long she's been around, she'd notice a series of deaths someone like Morinth would leave behind."

"Are there any aliases she may be going by?" Garrus questioned.

"Morinth itself is such an alias. I am unsure if she has chosen another yet. I know only that the name she would never take is Mirala. The name I gave her. The name, and life, she has forsaken," Samara answered. Mirala. I'll keep that in mind. With nothing else to discuss for the moment, we exited the Normandy and entered this cesspit of an asteroid. We weren't as close to Afterlife as we were before, but hardly far away, and we were let in immediately. To the ire of those in line. But it didn't matter. We entered the club and made our way to Aria's overlook. The guards, recognizing me, did let us past, though they eyed Samara curiously and with suspicion. While Aria did have some guests getting… serviced, like when we first ca-... arrived here, Aria was lounging on her couch as the same Batarian as before seemed to be reading off a report of some kind. The Batarian was waved off as we approached and we took our seats on one of the sides of the Couch, leaving the center to Aria.

"I take it this isn't a house call. Who's your friend?" In response, Samara pulled back her hood for her, revealing the strange… things she wears on her forehead, before returning the hood over her. So that's what those are. Symbols of her role.

"Well, well, well," Aria smirked, leaning back. "A goddess damned Justicar on _my_ station. Oh, Shepard, don't you just make all kinds of friends."

"I figured you'd be concerned," I remarked. Aria scoffed as she began.

"Concerned? I've dodged Justicars before, I know how they work. She's sworn an oath to you. I know she can't touch me unless you tell her to. Like a leashed Varren. Besides, if she wasn't sworn, she'd have been on a killing spree the moment she got off your ship. This does give me a good idea what you're here for, however. Been a while since I've known of one of those little devils being on my station. I don't really care so long as she stays away from me and my people, but I have no problem helping you."

"And you don't seem surprised either," I added.

"While all Asari that work for me get… checked. A mind meld in a room of armed guards, I have my people watch for cases of veggies and brain hemorrhages. Just in case. Nothing leaves a body as… empty… as they do."

"So, if you've been keeping tabs, who and where was the last victim?" Garrus asked.

"Young girl. Pretty too. Lived in the tenements near here with her mother. Just outside the markets. Check there." She looked up. "Tell them the specifics." The Batarian that had been reading some report to her then hastily looked for and relatively quickly found another file on his data pad.

"Right, right… Apartment… 738. The complex is essentially next to the tram to the Gozu district."

"Good luck catching her, Shepard. Better luck finding her. And keep in mind that girl you mentioned last time when you turned down my girls. You go in willing to get your dick wet you'll be a corpse," she remarked.

"Way ahead of you there," I responded, standing up from the couch, alongside the others.

"Hey, Justicar," Aria called out. "I may not give two shits about you, your order, or your damned code, but put her ass in the ground." Samara simply shared a nod. Garrus and I remembered the way to the Gozu trams, so we wasted no time in going there. Found the entrance to the apartment complex, and it was, unsurprisingly, completely insecure. No greeters, anyone can go in and enter the elevator. Which we did, and towards the proper apartment. Once there, we rang the doorbell. It took some time, but a comm unit from the door activated, the tenant, the mother, I'd suspect, spoke up. Since I wasn't in my armor, that wouldn't confuse things quite yet.

"Who-Who are you?" she questioned.

"We're investigating the death of a young woman who lived here. Are you her mother?" I asked. She paused, I guess surprise.

"Who are you?"

"My friend here," I gestured at Garrus "Used to work with Citadel-Security. My other friend," I gestured at Samara, "Is an Asari Justicar. Essentially their top level of Law Enforcement. As for myself, I'm Alliance. May we come in?" She did not answer, instead, opening the door. She was around middle aged, some wrinkles showing and her brown hair showing some grey. And her general demeanor was just… broken. The apartment itself, this entrance room was mixed between the kitchen, dining room, and living room. A hallway down the middle.

"C-can I get you something to drink?"

"Thank you, but I think we'll pass. We really can't afford to waste any time, Mrs.…?" I answered gently.

"I'm Diana," she breathed. "Ok. Nef… My little Nef died a week ago. Today. She was comatose two days before. And no one seems to care…" she sniffled. "The medics said it was a brain hemorrhage, but that can't be true. Just, in some alley? In a coma? It's murder, has to be. Someone killed my baby Nef," some tears came forth, sadness mixed with anger.

"And we believe the same. The killer we're after leaves their victims in this manner." Her eyes widened and she gasped.

"Thank you! Thank you," the tears came forth more. "It's so hard when no one believes you! I've been all alone…"

"Tell us about her," Garrus asked.

"My Nef… she had a fire inside. She was shy, but creative. Driven." The ghost of a smile appeared. "The best girl a mother could hope for."

"Can you say more of her creativity?" Samara questioned.

"She was a sculptor. There were galleries interested in her work, called it fresh. Apparently, one was considering an offer that could have gotten us off of this hell-hole of a rock."

"Did she have many friends you knew of?" Garrus continued.

"Not many, no. She spent most of her time sculpting, not hanging out with friends. But. Something changed a few weeks ago. She started talking about this, Asari. Almost constantly. Morinth," she said the name with pure hatred. Distaste. "I didn't like her. She kept dragging Nef out to clubs. And I'm confidant she gave Nef drugs."

"That's her. I'm surprised she hasn't chosen a new alias," I remarked. Diana's eyes narrowed. "Samara, does she often use drugs on her victims?"

"She has no need; her willpower alone is more than enough. The narcotics are a lifestyle. Same as her love for clubs, bass. She is a hedonist, through and through." Samara turned to Diana. "I swear upon you, and the Code of the Justicars. I will bring justice upon the murderer of your daughter."

"And we second that. One more question, at least for the moment," Garrus went on. "Did Nef have any particular hangouts? Anywhere that Morinth might have found her?"

"It used to be just here at home. But a few weeks ago, right around the time she met that... Fucking murderer, she was going out all the time. To Afterlife's VIP area. I think it needs a password. And the change was just so sudden. Whenever she came home, she was… tired. Distracted. And it was whenever she wasn't around Morinth." Garrus as she finished.

"May I examine her room?" Diana took a deep breath.

"It's completely unchanged, just the way she left it, the way it will always be. Do whatever you need to do to find her. It's down the hall, on the left."

"Thank you." Samara and I stayed with Diana as she took a seat on the couch.

"My baby is gone… She's gone and nothing will fix that," she began to cry. I took a seat beside her and put my hand on her shoulder for comfort. She leaned into it. "Thank you… I'm sorry. I j-just, miss her so much…"

"I know. The three of us are no strangers to loss."

"I know well what it means to lose a daughter. Yours will be avenged." Samara added. We simply sat there in silence until Garrus finished his investigation a short time later.

"Anything I moved I returned to where it was," Garrus began. "I think we have everything we need. Thank you, Diana."

"Find her. Please," Diana murmured.

"We will. And if you want, we'd be happy to give you a ride on our ship off of Omega. Or out of Terminus."

"Th-Thank you, but… I don't know if I want to leave… her. If that makes sense."

"I understand. Take your time to mourn. If you decide you want to leave…" I opened my Omni-tool and transferred a few thousand credits her way. More than enough to keep her living comfortably here for a while, and certainly enough to catch a ride to the Citadel, and get a fresh start there. "You'll have the option. I'll send word once we catch the killer." Diana just began to break down, barely getting out her thank you. We left Diana to her mourning, and when we returned to the elevator down, Garrus began his debrief of his findings.

"She had a diary that left the password for Afterlife's VIP club, as well as some correspondence from what has to be Morinth. Art and vids and the like," Garrus explained. "To get into the VIP, you have to drop the name Jaruut to the bouncer." He then played one of the notes from Morinth, letting me hear her voice. She spoke like… like she was just some 'teenage' flirt. Disgusting.

"And what of the art? Vids? Any names?" Samara asked.

"I took note of that too. Primarily, an Elcor sculptor called Forta. The diary also mentions Morinth enjoying some Asari vids called Vaenia."

"Unsurprising. Nef would be a prime target for Morinth. She prefers to target the spirited and creative. Those slightly isolated from their peers. She impresses with sophistication and sex appeal before she strikes. She is as obsessed with the hunt as she is the conquest."

"An Apex Predator," I remarked.

"Indeed. She speaks to her victims on many levels. Her body invites with the prospect of unimaginable ecstasy. Her scent evoking long hidden emotions. Her eyes offer what one was always scared to ask of another, and her voice whispers after she is done speaking. This is the power of an Ardat-Yakshi's manipulation. It has never been clear; biotics? Or even psionics? There is danger regardless. You must go to Afterlife's VIP section. Alone, unarmed."

"Oh, Tali is going to love this," Garrus chuckled.

"Save it for after this is done," I warned. "Samara, not even a pistol? This is Omega after all."

"Fair. But Morinth is cagey. It might require more work to attract her, and no doubt once she brings you to her apartment, she will attempt to remove it. Allow that." I nodded my understanding. "Let's not waste time."

"Garrus, why don't you head back? One person can follow in the shadows easier than two."

"If you insist. But stay safe, alright? This would be an embarrassing way to lose Commander Shepard."

"I'm not happy with brain fuckery, but I'm not the unexpecting victim."

"That alone gives the Commander a boon," Samara reassured. Garrus shrugged, and we parted. Samara and I going to the VIP, Garrus to the ship. There was a Turian bouncer by the door, but no line.

"I will wait out here, Shepard. I will watch, and I will follow."

"Understood." I approached the Bouncer, staring me down with white colony markings on the upper portion of his head, seemingly emphasizing a skull. "Jaruut sent me," I remarked.

"Word of advice," the Turian began, accepting the name. "I don't recognize you, so listen. Start a fight, we'll hurt you. You get attacked, you're fine to knock them to the ground. Your gun's fine but keep it holstered. But if you're just the faster draw than they are on the trigger? We'll let that pass." The Turian stepped to the side, keying the door to open and letting me pass. There was a small hallway but already the bass was pounding, making it almost impossible to hear anything else. A central dance floor with a raised platform of strippers on poles, like in Afterlife 'proper.' Asari, Human, Turian, and even Batarian women. And just inside of where the hallway exited into the main part of the club, there was a young man with a chinstrap 'beard,' that ran up to me.

"Hey! Do you know where I can get tickets for Expel 10? I heard this amazing," he closed his eyes and leaned back, enamored. "Asari say they were her favorite band. I want… I want whatever she wants. I got to find tickets! Expel 10 is playing tomorrow!"

"Tell me about the band," I asked.

"One of those sensory bands. They crawl in your hand and make you feel things. And this Asari is all over them! I could score way out of my league, man! Help me out, please!"

"You want help, kid? Here's some advice." I leaned in close so that I could speak relatively softer. "She'll make you wish you pissed off Aria instead of hitting on her. Head on home, stay out of the club for a few days. Ok?" I patted him on the shoulder.

"You're… weird, man…" he murmured.

"Trust me." I moved past him and into the club. It seems on the dance floor there were other club dancers that were wearing slightly more than those on the raised platform. And one was being hounded and groped by this Turian. Despite the Asari clearly telling him to fuck off. While I couldn't hear the words yet, the mannerisms were clear. While I know I need to attract Morinth, hopefully he tries to fight, the result of how that goes will get her attention. So that's where I'm starting.

"Come on, baby, I can pay. I'm a good tipper too," he offered.

"I told you to fuck off, dumbass, I'm no whore!" Well, that's not Morinth.

"Come on, no need to play hard to get, I-"

"Hey, she said no. Try finding one that says yes."

"The hell, man? I'm just looking for a good time! This isn't your business," he glared.

"Step. Off." I warned. The Turian growled, and threw his fist out in a right hook. No, I'll take this. The cheekbones are fucking hardy as it is. Thanks to my enhancements… I admit, I did have to roll my jaw after the impact, and my head was pushed to the side, but that was the extent of the reaction. Slowly, I turned back to stare him down, and cracked my neck. There was a moment of fear on his features as I noticed he was shaking his hand. I slammed my right fist into his gut, right where the flesh gets soft, causing him to bend over, and my left fist right into his side. He tried to stand up straight and I took the opportunity to throw an uppercut that sent him reeling back against the wall of the center of the dance floor and he slid down. Unconscious.

"Thanks for that," the Asari remarked. "Security was asleep." Right, let's keep putting on a show.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

After helping out the dancer, this panicked man had approached me. Long story short? He and his friend were journalists discreetly doing a piece on a crime boss. They had some code words for if they were figured out, which they were, and he needed his friend out and away from the crime boss. I played the part of an ignorant foreigner and dropped the words for her letting her find an out. Other than that, I made a pair of muggers re-think their actions for the night, and stared down a Krogan trying to play tough, and he was the one who backed down. At the moment I was sitting at the bar. Waiting, for just a bit. Maybe I could try convincing the bartender to-

A small, lithe hand snaked across my back, a woman, an Asari, taking a seat on the barstool next to me. With an uncanny resemblance to Samara. I raised a brow.

"Hey," she smiled. "Name's Morinth. I've been watching you. And you are by far the most interesting person in this place."

"That so?" She was wearing a black leather outfit, form fitting.

"It is. I've got a booth over there in the shadows. Why don't you come sit with me?" she offered.

"Lead the way." Morinth grinned, and we both stood from the bar. I followed her. She was trying to walk seductively, but I knew what she was. I just kept watching the back of her head. The booth in question was small, not very well lit, with a bottle of booze and a container of what I'd bet to be hallex to the side. She took her seat on the far side, I took a seat on the closer. She leaned back, laying one leg across the other.

"Most days there's no one interesting to talk do. Some nights, there's just one… Tonight that's you. Why's that?"

"I know what I like," I shrugged.

"Oh?"

"I've traveled all over the galaxy, for one."

"It changes you, doesn't it?" It does. For some, better. For others, worse. Let's say it changes me in a way she likes.

"You've never really traveled unless you've gone somewhere dangerous. And this rock? Child's play." Morinth grinned again.

"Where you can see and do things most can't imagine. When I travel, I'm always drawn to the dark and dangerous. The violent ones. It's the surest expression of power." There's a measure of truth to that. Not total truth, but truth. Hearkens to the age-old law of survival of the fittest. One that a successful society can, for the most part, overrule. It's better that. But Morinth doesn't need to know I feel that way.

"Violence is a means to an end. Power? That's the end."

"And where have you expressed that means to an end? On who?"

"Pirates learn not to fuck with me quick enough. Beyond that? Let's just say I've done some poking and prodding around the veil." That got her interest.

"I'm impressed. But what else does a man like you know you like?"

"I've been known to appreciate art."

"Oh? Art speaks to me. The darkest places in me. You?"

"There's an Elcor sculptor. Forta. He's caught my attention." Her eyes widened.

"Really? I thought no one here knew about him. He's sublime. But sculpture isn't the only kind of art. I've seen vids more powerful than any sculpture sitting in some gallery."

"I'll hazard a guess for what you like. Vaenia?"

"My favorite. The two lead actresses are glamorous."

"Maybe I'll give it a shot."

"I wouldn't mind going on a binge with you. What else?"

"What about the music here?" I asked.

"Dark rhythms. Violent pulses. It stirs something… primitive in me. You might get something stronger. I know humans could be some savage primitives back in the day."

"Heard of a group recently. Expel 10. Haven't given that sensory music a shot before." Morinth grinned wider.

"They get in my head and tear it to pieces," she writhed slightly. "They're in concert soon. You could go with me. You know…" she glanced at the Hallex bottle. "You can get lost in the music here. I know a few ways to enhance that."

"Thought I recognized that as Hallex. But I think right now I'd prefer a clear head. You know, to remember the night," I hinted. Samara did mention she likes some measure of directness.

"Good thinking. You want to get out of here? My apartment is nearby. And I want you all to myself…"

She's taken the bait. Now just to let her pull along just a bit longer before reeling in the catch.

"Lead the way, Morinth." She stood from the booth, as did I, and began a sultry but quick walk out of the club, same way I came in. As we exited, I glanced over to where I suspected Samara would be hiding. We shared a quick moment of eye contact, still hooded, as she leisurely began to follow. Keeping her distance but sure not to lose. The experience of someone who's been doing this for centuries. Morinth lead me up through the markets to one of the wealthier areas. Suppose I'm not surprised she's gathered up a reserve of credits. This was an area where mercs would _actually_ work as security. Private security, sure, but they wouldn't let anyone stab each other's guts out in the street here. And the apartment complex Morinth lead me to? This was actually manned. Staffed. But they won't stop Samara. No matter how hard they try. We entered the elevator and she pressed the button for the 13th floor. She ran her hand across my back, and it took every ounce of control I had to not pull away, recoil at her touch, or respond at all at the monster's touch. These were fancy apartments. The room was 1313. Very heavy handed death symbolism. Like a bad book just trying to force such symbolism wherever it can. Where an English teacher can ask what the colors of the curtains in a book represent and have it _genuinely_ represented more than the color of damn curtains.

The room itself was large, probably double the size of Diana's apartment, but larger and more luxurious, and only a single bedroom on a slightly higher floor. Nothing but three stairs separating them.

"I'm just going to use the restroom."

"Sure. It's just right there," she pointed to a door along the right wall. Now, it wasn't a lie that I had to piss, but it's not the only reason I'm here. I needed to send a message to Samara of the specific room and floor. I did that while I did my business, flushed, washed, and exited to find her lying on the sofa. She had a collection of short swords and rapiers on a wall. A statue of a Krogan by the bed.

"The statue was a gift from a suitor. But that rock has more personality than he ever did. Still, he managed to impress me enough to get what he wanted. Didn't end how he hoped," she remarked. Yeah, I'm sure it didn't.

"What about the swords?"

"Dueling. I practiced for a while. I lived for those moments when you see it in your opponent's eyes. Where he knows you're better than him, and that he's going to die." Sadistic. "It's why I've also played Chess. Good on you humans for that game. Your opponent can believe that he's about to win. And then you turn it around, killing him." Again, sadistic, and symbolic. Isn't that exactly how Ardat-Yakshi hunt? Their prey thinks they're about to win big, a roll in the hay, and then their brain gets melted from the inside out. "Come on. Sit down, right next to me," she murmured with a grin. I obliged. She stayed where she was sitting for the moment.

"I love clubs," she began. "People. Movement. Beat. I can still hear the bass, like the drums of a great hunt. Out for your blood. But here? It's muted. And you're safe. Is that what you want?" I began to feel a slight… pressure on my mind. A part of me whispering to say yes. To comply. I shouted that down. I know what I'm up against. And I've got someone a helluva lot better than this monster of an Asari.

"People feel safest right before they die," I remarked. She eyed me curiously.

"It's true. We're never safe. I've never understood the fascination with safety. Some of us choose differently. I want independence, not submission. Not like those idiots in Citadel space. We share that, you and I…" she stood and slowly walked over to me, sitting down in my lap, sideways. There was the pressure again. The whisper. It felt like it was trying to be subtle. But I know what that has to be. I refuse to let the whispers of the Reapers ever get to me. I'll be damned if I let the whispers of a killer get to me. She gently reached for the holster at my hip, removed the gun, and placed it on the table behind me. Every instinct told me not to let her, but to keep up the charade just a bit longer, I had to.

"We've both killed many times. But that's where the similarities end." Her brow furrowed.

"Why do you say that I've killed? What do you know? Let's stop playing games." Her eyes went black, like when Liara melded with my mind on the Normandy to get the cipher. Her mind games were resorting to brute force now. The whispers were shouts. "Look into my eyes and tell me you want me." The shouting in my head echoed Morinth. "Tell me you'd kill for me. Anything I want." She ran her hand across my chest. Fuck you. I kept thinking of Tali, now. Her face. Her smile. And it helped, again, to remember exactly what this is on my lap. She isn't having me. Not today, not ever.

I smirked, and gave a slight chuckle.

"I just took the mask off my girlfriend for the first time a few days ago. And you don't even begin to compare. You'll have to try harder than that… Mirala." The shouting in my head came to an abrupt stop, Morinth blinked and her eyes were normal once again, but wide open. There was fear. No, terror.

"How do you-" The door to the apartment blasted open, the doors creaking and whining as biotics forcefully bent and tore the metal, ruining the doors entirely as Samara strode in, already wreathed in a blue biotic aura.

"Shit," she murmured as she shot out of my lap and to her feet.

"Mirala," Samara stated simply, glaring at her daughter, before she reached out with her biotics and launched Mirala against the window, cracking the glass as she grunted in pain. I stood, grabbing my pistol, but not shooting. Not yet. This is Samara's justice.

"Mother," she hissed.

"Do not call me that." Another surge forced her against the glass harder.

"I can't choose to stop being your daughter. Mother," she repeated with mockery and disdain.

"You made your choice long ago." Mirala curled herself into a ball before exploding with biotic force, freeing herself, knocking me back against the wall, and staggering Samara a good several feet.

"What choice?" she shouted, using one hand to lift up Samara and another to lift a chair. "My only crime was being born with the gifts you gave me!" She forgot to add a few hundred, at least, accounts of murder. She attempted to slam the chair into Samara, but with her own biotics, she slapped it out of the way, finding herself dropped to the floor.

"Enough, Mirala!" Samara shouted, using her biotics to impact her around the shoulder, knocking her to the ground in turn as she stood. But she recovered just as fast as both unleashed a surge of biotics toward each other, culminating in a giant surge of energy between them.

"I am the genetic destiny of the Asari! But they are not ready to understand, so I must die!" Mirala argued. This surge was causing all the furniture in the room to begin floating. I know biotics can generate a singularity. I hope that's not what's happening here.

"You are a disease to be purged, nothing more!" Samara retorted. Mirala turned her head to me, an almost pleading look.

"I'm as strong as she is. Let me join you!"

"You wanted to kill me to feed your addiction. And you'll keep killing," I answered, already approaching her.

"No!" she shouted as I shot out her right kneecap with the pistol. Causing her to cry out in pain and drop, her biotics dissipating. Morinth was bleeding, and she struggled onto her back. Trying desperately to crawl away as Samara approached. The Justicar's biotics flared up again as she got down and grabbed Mirala by the throat.

"Find peace in the embrace of the Goddess," she spoke quietly.

And then snapped her neck.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: I did my research and Mirala is either Morinth's first alias or her birth-name. It wasn't clear but I was under the impression that birth-name is more likely.**


	49. Questions

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys! Happy N7 day! Here's a chapter for ya that's nice and wholesome. As for a chapter this sunday, while I am hoping to still be able to get it out, my Aunt's English Shepherds had a litter of puppies, and as we've been expecting, we got the last of them last Saturday. And she is quite the exhausting handful. And not potty trained yet. Yay. Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter. Hope for a chapter come monday, but please don't be too upset if there isn't one. Oh, and the descriptions of the Quarian "Realk" and their patterns, credit goes to Calinstel. I really had to dig to find those descriptions again.  
**

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

We had been on Omega for the better part of the day, and John has been out the entire time helping Samara track down her fugitive. Curiously, Garrus had returned relatively recently to work on the Normandy's guns. As for what I've been doing, there honestly wasn't much work to be done. I was doing what little I could do to see off the rest of the sickness. Which, fortunately, wasn't much at all. And ever since I learned about the decontamination unit, I've been skirting the limits of what the body can handle as far as immuno-booster doses and antibiotics. Which is more than I've been needing to fight off the sickness. The truth of the matter is that I've barely been able to stay on my feet all day, fighting off sleep. I've been considering taking stims, but that might be too many chemicals in my bloodstream for one day.

Fortunately, there hasn't been much work to do in the first place, so I was essentially forcing myself awake as much as I could with short bouts of just passing out in port observation, spending time with Kasumi. I would be 'pressured' into revealing details of the night I showed John my face, and in exchange, Kasumi would give me… um… advice… about human men… It'll be some time yet before I can put any-well, most of it… to use. My body needs to adapt to him more, I need to be fully healthy, no hint of disease, and the medications running strong in my system.

A small hand on my shoulder shook me as I had been dozing off again.

"Tali?" Kasumi spoke gently. "EDI just chimed in. Shep's back."

"Hmm? Wha-... Oh… right," I shook my head as I sat up straight, hand to my visor, right over the forehead. "Thanks, er… Kasumi," I blinked my eyes wide several times, fighting off sleep yet again. I stood and almost lost my balance, staying on my feet thanks to Kasumi. I thanked her again and left to find John. Or maybe I should just ask where he is. And at that moment, the elevator opened, Samara disembarking, her stance more rigid than before, and appearing bruised. "Samara," I called out. She turned, the same stoic, emotionless face as always. But her body language was off. Those not used to reading body language might not notice, but someone who's entire society is dependent on it? Samara's is significantly off. And I don't know why. But John's back on the ship so if nothing else, he's ok.

"Yes, Tali?" Her voice was as stoic as her face, which only made the strangeness of her body language more concerning.

"Um… Where's John?"

"He is waiting to take the elevator up to his quarters. He allowed me to make use of it first. Now please, excuse me. I need to meditate."

"Of course. Thanks, Samara." She turned and continued to the starboard observation, and I entered the elevator, already being called upwards. So I went along for the ride. My sluggish arms weren't going to complain. The elevator went on up to CIC, the door opening to show John waiting, looking a bit tired, and a double take in surprise to see me.

"Oh! Tali," he greeted, stepping into the elevator.

"Hi," I yawned. "John. Did you and Samara find the criminal?"

"We did. She's dead. Why don't we talk in our quarters? You seem tired."

"Medications," I shrugged. "And sure."

"How's the sickness coming along anyway?"

"More or less gone now. Or I just have so many meds in my system that I can't feel any of the symptoms."

"Or much anything?" John chuckled. "Sometimes the best ways to help you get over a cold is just to take something that knocks you the fuck out. You can't feel your sinuses clogged if you're not conscious."

"That… is true," I joined the chuckle. The elevator came to a stop, we disembarked, the decon unit ran its course, and we entered our quarters. Oh. Our quarters. I did just call it that. We went down to the sofa and took our seats beside each other, John releasing a deep breath as he took his seat, shifting as he seemed to adjust for sores, an arm going around my shoulder.

"So… Morinth. Mirala…" he trailed off, seemingly in disgust.

"Mirala?"

"Her birth name. That Samara gave her."

"Wha-Oh. _Oh!_ Keelah, that's horrible!"

"Yeah. Yeah, it is."

"How did you catch her?"

"Long story short, Aria gave us a lead as to who the last kill was, found her hunting ground, a few things to lure her in, and I was the bait. Going into a club and getting her interested enough to invite me to her apartment for Samara to catch her off guard."

"...What? Isn't that a bit much just to catch a serial killer?"

"She's more than that. It's something that stretches back to early Asari history. Ardat-Yakshi. A genetic disorder that kills through mind-melding. You can see how dangerous that would be on Omega."

"You were the bait for what is quite literally a sexual predator?" I exclaimed, coming out of my stupor.

"The years have made her careful as hell. And all her kills make her stronger, apparently. We had to get her somewhere closed off and with her guard down. Between the fact that pretending to be her next victim would fulfill both of those, and Samara's insistence that knowing what she was did a great deal to keep me safe? I was confident enough," John explained.

"It was still awfully dangerous."

"Sure, but what isn't in this line of work? And all I really had to do was show off a bit to get her attention, then act like I liked what she did and thought the same way. In the apartment she tried to start her mind games, but, well, I just thought of you," he grinned. I dropped her real name as Samara broke down her door and the two had quite the impressive biotic scuffle. Samara, obviously, won in the end, snapping Mirala's neck. Call me paranoid, but after Samara left, I put a pair of bullets in her skull. The ability to genuinely screw with someone's mind is freaky and freaks me out."

"As it should. Keelah," I murmured. "I wish you had told me."

"I didn't want you worrying about me. If I knew you were worried, I'd be more worried, and like I said, mind games freak me out. I'd rather not take chances," he shrugged. I didn't really have a response for that, so I just rested my head on his shoulder. "As tired as we might be, there are still a few hours in the day, and I'm hungry. How about we grab a bite from the mess and take it up here?"

"That sounds nice, John." We stood and made our way down, grabbing our meals and taking our leave. John had explained that his seasoned meal was a kind of fish from Earth, a 'Sam Mon,' I think. As for myself, sterilized Turian poultry, Louza. We returned to our quarters, took our seats again, and started working on our meals. John even waited for me to finish preparing so that we could eat together. We continued with our meals in relative silence. As I chewed my own food I watched as John ate his 'sam mon,' his silverware easily cutting the fish into bite sizes, as well as the seasoning covering it. Naturally, I wondered how it would taste, regardless of the fact that even if not for Quarian immune systems, I'd never safely get to find out. Eventually, we finished our meals and returned to comfortable positions on the couch, myself leaning on him as he leaned back against the couch.

"Hm, there's an idea," he mused out loud.

"Hm?"

"Remember last time we were just chatting up here? After Kasumi's heist?"

"I do. When we talked about our people's history. Like on the old Normandy as well. What about it?"

"Well, I've got a few questions I wouldn't mind asking. And I'd be happy to answer questions in return."

"I'd be ok with that."

"Good. I'm just going to brush my teeth first. I figure as soon as we're done, we're going to sleep anyways," he shrugged. I shifted my weight off of him, allowing him to stand and move towards the bathroom. And a thought came to mind. I pulled down my Realk and unsealed my mask, taking in a nice, deep breath of the cabin air. Quickly, I removed the rest of my helmet and laid it all to rest on the small table in front of the couch. I simply waited to hear the bathroom door open again. When it did, I couldn't help but hold my breath, both fighting my own nerves and to surprise John. He stepped down, turned to the couch to see me staring right back at him, a nervous grin. He blinked twice, rapidly.

"You sure?" He asked.

"Yes, John. I'm sure." He smiled at my response and continued to return to his place. When he did sit, I began moving to kiss him, but he must not have noticed, as he put a hand to the back of my head, gently rustling my short hair, pulling my forehead against his lips as he left a soft, gentle, kiss upon it. Why did that feel so… sweet? We shared another smile before he granted me the short kiss that I was looking for. It's still an incredible sensation, but, as difficult as it was, I held myself back. This was a conversation we both wanted to have. Anything else can wait.

"So, the first question that's been on my mind. I already know that you call the cloth a Realk, and that the patterns represent a Quarian's clan. Do the patterns themselves represent anything more beyond the clan itself?"

"Oh, they do, actually. While all clan patterns are unique, they all are built off of the same base elements. Straight lines for firmness, circles for linked choices or change. The diamonds like on Auntie-Raan's Realk show firmness, yes, but also making hard decisions while able to return and perhaps change such decisions. If a Clan has wavy lines, they don't believe in simple choices," I explained. "Clan Zorah's pattern is primarily straight lines and circles, obviously. The lines are long, but gently begin to curve into spirals. That indicates a firmness in our decisions, though an understanding that it can return to the beginning, but it is never quite the same. We move towards our goals, facing the same challenges, though they may take different forms." John nodded his head.

"Interesting. I think I understand. I see how it's fluid in the sense that it doesn't dictate the views or specific decisions involved, just their dedication yet open-mindedness of holding them."

"Precisely. I believe it's my turn next."

"Go ahead." I took a minute to think of a good question I could ask him. I think I'll start with this.

"You and Councilor Anderson are very close. Is he to you as Auntie-Raan is to me?"

"He… essentially is," John shrugged. "He and my dad were best friends even before they enlisted. They got separated for a while after dad washed out of N7 training, David kept going. Not separated out of hostility, mind you, dad just went on to continue his service while David went through with N7. By the time I was born, dad was actually serving under David. All my life he's been an uncle to me."

"And Auntie-Raan was the one who took me from my mother when I was born and put me inside my bubble."

"So, like a sister to your mother like David was like a brother to my father," John remarked. I simply nodded.

"So, next question…" John began. "Well, I would ask about Realk colors, but I think I've already pieced together that they symbolize profession or expertise. So. How about… your earlier life? What kind of things would you do in your free time? That you haven't already told me, that is."

"Hm. Well, other than studying, I'm sure. My parents, father especially, encouraged much of that. But in my free time where I wasn't in my studies? You remember Kal, of course. He was a childhood best friend. So was Lana. She was on Freedom's Progress and Haestrom. Lana'Shalgur. There were games we'd play as children, alongside others around our age. Seekers was one. Two children are tasked as seekers, with the goal of finding where all other children have decided to hide," I explained.

"Oh! Humans have a game almost just like that. Except there's only one 'seeker.' Hide and Go Seek, is what we call it."

"I suppose we involve two seekers because of how much our society stresses, and requires, cooperation," I mused. "But other than games like that, sometimes I'd go down to the Rayya's engineering, watch, and ask questions to learn from some of the engineers. There were specific areas that were safe for children, particularly those interested in an Engineering future, to go, observe, and the engineers present were capable and willing to answer questions, as they worked." I paused. "My turn. What did you do in your youth?"

"Hm. That largely depended on where I was. Outside of my studies, or the physical training I wanted to start after I reached my teens? If I was on the ship a parent was serving on, I'd make use of the extranet when in buoy range, for… any number of things. And when not, I'd play games or watch movies that I had downloaded while in buoy range. Mind you, free time like this was probably more common than your own, but uncommon by the standards of most human kids."

"And where else would you be?"

"Arcturus. Sometimes planet side on a number of worlds with my parents. For the latter, we'd just go see the sights, generally be out and about. But for Arcturus? Most of the other spacer kids, even those not planning on joining the Alliance themselves made use of the simulators all the time. War games. Simulated dogfights in Alliance Fighters, simulated large scale navy battles, or a classic boots on the ground sim. More or less just another First Person Shooter game but in full VR gear."

"You must have spent plenty of time there," I remarked.

"Can you tell?" John chuckled. While at the end of the day it was always a game, sure, even during free time, it was just early training for those planning to enlist. VIs would evaluate players and supervisors might chip in as well if they ever saw fit."

"I believe that's your turn then."

"Let me think…" John trailed off. Quiet, for a moment. "If you had to pick one place in the entire galaxy to go and see, to visit. Where would it be?"

"Well, Rannoch, obviously, but I suspect you were thinking of somewhere that's safer to travel," I answered, a hint of sadness creeping in.

"Hey, we'll get you there. I promise you that. But I was thinking of places outside the Perseus Veil."

"Well… I'm not sure if there's any one place I'd want to go. You've told me so much about Earth and your people that I must admit I want to see it for myself someday, but I've also heard the most beautiful things about Thessia. I think-No, actually. Do you remember on Virmire? The beaches we saw? You told me about the beaches you've been to. That's something I think I'd like to experience someday. Admittedly, without the suit, but to experience nonetheless."

"Then you've given me an idea. I've heard about environmental simulators on the Citadel. Large rooms that, would probably not be too difficult to turn into clean rooms, and simulate different environments. Like miniature versions of the simulator on Pinnacle station and with less shooting. We could go to one of those next time we're there. Let you feel rain, wind, beaches, you name it. And I'll be there to tell you how it compares to the real thing."

"If we have the time… yes. That sounds like a great idea."

"Then consider it done," he grinned, lowering his head so we could share another kiss.

"Now, same question. Where would you want to go?"

"After going to Rannoch with you and going to one of those sim chambers with you? I want to say… huh. While I think I'd like the jungles of Sur'Kesh, I think I'd actually want to spend a few days wandering around Palaven."

"Why's that?"

"A few reasons, I think. First, I think it's because the Turians simultaneously bear so many similarities and differences with humanity. It's almost like what their society is, Humanity could have turned into at several points in our history. Second? Their environment evolved them into those carapaced flightless birds. I want to see what it turned their wildlife into. And third, their society is rather similar to that of the Romans of Human history. I've already been to Rome. I want to see what other similarities to them I can find in their cities."

"That would be interesting, I think. From an outside perspective, your first contact war seems almost like the squabble of siblings more than true war, after all."

"Did it now? Wonder what Garrus would think about that," John chuckled. "Well, I'm actually out of questions now. You can ask away if you have any."

"I can't really say that I do," I shrugged.

"Well," John yawned. "Well, then I'm almost ready to get some sleep then."

"Almost?" I looked up at him, brow raised.

"Almost, because I refuse to waste the time that I can see and feel you on something as trivial as sleep," he remarked. I must admit, a blush came to my cheeks.

"Good. Because I refuse to waste that time myself," I smiled. I reached my hand up behind his head and pulled his lips down to mine. Both our lips parted without hesitation, and it surprised me almost as much as it did the first time I removed my mask for him how… eager I was in our kissing. How quickly I found myself atop him. Holding him as close as physically possible, and reveling in him doing the same.

Damn this mask. Damn this suit.


	50. Loose Ends

**The Illusive Man**

I closed the latest report from Lawson and took a long drag of my cigarette, followed by a sip of my whiskey after releasing the smoke. My frustration from these reports might lead me to attempt Hallex to settle my nerves from these reports. Yes, Shepard is making progress securing the loyalty of his team and removing more tumors from my galaxy like the Ardat-Yakshi. Yet while I can rest assured that Lawson's ultimate loyalties continue to remain with me, the open animosity between her and Shepard endanger the mission. This cannot be solved by simply telling the two to get along. No, that's impossible. What I need is an event that will grow trust between the two. A working relationship where they can truly set their differences aside.

The best course of action? Shepard needs to see a side of Lawson that she'd never openly or willingly show except under dire circumstances to humanize her as opposed to the 'Cheerleader,' as Subject Zero puts it. And Lawson needs Shepard to help her out of a dire situation, just as Cerberus did. And so long as she continues to doubt the validity of the Commander's history with my organization, her ultimate loyalty should, by all accounts, remain with Cerberus.

Yes… this should be more than sufficient. Oriana. Currently on Illium, still living with her foster family. Lawson's personal network to keep an eye on her has been enough to throw Henry off in the past. But I have access to her network, considering I've supplied her with more than a few of her contacts. Contacting and informing Henry Lawson as to his perfected wayward daughter's location, and providing enough information on the net cast by his imperfect daughter to cause a blackout should be trivial. No, this is almost perfect. I can't have Shepard being distracted every other week as Henry hunts her down. I need it leaked to Henry, but through a contact. One that might be hesitant to reveal more. It would be simple to work in a thanks to Cerberus. Yes, Niket. Close to Miranda, a tie to her old life. He would want it done peacefully, quietly. He'd can be the leak, while withholding exact information. A partition of EDI can discreetly calculate the best timing to have Lawson tipped off while Henry puts his pawns in place, allowing for the Normandy to arrive and rescue Oriana. Not only should this cement a layer of trust between Lawson and the Commander, providing this information to Henry should return a sizable investor to Cerberus' fold. While maintaining enough plausible deniability of my double play.

True, EDI could be considered a risk for leaking this information if it calculates the data, but putting a block on the information and memory of it would be simpler than having it calculate in the first place. The only potential for a leak sprouts from the removal of the physical blockers. And between the Commander's own memories of the Geth, and the fact he's bedding the Quarian, they'd all sooner destroy EDI than free it.

* * *

 **Miranda Lawson**

Two days ago, Shepard had assisted Samara with her fugitive, and I had pressed him for at least enough information to fill a report for The Illusive Man. Unfortunately, that questioning had to wait until first thing the following morning. Reluctantly, he had complied. I hadn't heard of Ardat-Yakshi before. I can admit that the Commander's mental fortitude is both impressive and fortunate. I admit, part of me can't help but wonder if his relationship with the Quarian helped. Since the questioning, Shepard both received and accomplished a request from Admiral Hackett. The Alliance had recently raided a Blood Pack communications/mining outpost near Illium in retaliation for a period of raids on Human colonies and freighters. And the comms outpost gave them a lead for a Blood Pack base of operations and Vorcha breeding grounds. That was too deep in Terminus for the alliance to strike at, so naturally, Hackett requested that Shepard take the Normandy and infiltrate the outpost from the chasm beside the base and detonate the nuclear reactor. As expected, I was not selected for the ground team, and I further find myself resigned as little more than a clerk aboard this ship. The shuttle is already returning with Shepard and his team, and it's time for the second of my daily check ins with Oriana. The moment the clock struck seven PM; I received a wave of notifications from my Omni-tool. Eight all clears. Two have not checked in. One is not unusual, and they likely check in moments later. But two? That is disturbing. Very disturbing. Hopefully they will check in shortly.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We returned to the ship, mission accomplished, and Hackett already informed. Quick and easy. The only unusual thing was that as soon as we had disembarked, EDI informed me that Miranda was asking that I go to her office. And that it was important. Strange, but fine. I'll get out of my armor afterwards. When I entered Miranda's office, she was pacing back and forth behind her desk. Her usual effort to hide emotions that weren't anger or contempt, and replaced with what was at the very least extreme nervousness, or borderline panic attack.

"Shepard," she started, realizing I had entered, and fighting to regain some of her composure. "I'm sorry. I find- I'm in- damn it," she cut herself off. "I need your help. It's a personal matter, but it's drastic."

"What's happened?" I asked. In full honesty, I was suspicious of even this. A nagging sensation that this was an act or ploy on her part. But, being honest with myself, I know that might just be paranoia. I'm already inclined to believe anything negative about her anyway. But I'll hear her through.

"You remember what I told you of my father? Building a Dynasty? I went to Cerberus for protection beyond just myself." She began pacing again. "I have a twin sister and my father is still hunting her. Cerberus kept her safe and helped me build my own network to keep an eye on her and keep her safe. She's living a normal life on Illium, safe and hidden from our father, but some of my contacts have gone dark for far longer than has ever been normal. Not only does this have to mean my father knows, but he's breached my network. Until now, I've done everything possible to keep her hidden without impacting her life, but I'm out of options. I need to relocate her and her family before it's too late."

"Is the family ready to relocate?"

"The family knows nothing. Completely uninvolved, completely normal. But Cerberus is fabricating a positive reason for them to move of their own volition."

"And your sister. Why didn't she join Cerberus with you? Has she been able to keep things quiet?" I asked. Miranda sighed, looking out the window.

"She is my genetic, identical twin, Shepard. But I didn't flee my father hand in hand with my sister, but with her as a baby in my arms. She deserves a normal life and I will do anything and everything to make sure that's exactly what she gets." Hm, right. There isn't actually a mother, she's just a female, perfected clone of her father. Figures that the sister is just a 'newer model,' as fucking weird as that is to say about people.

"So what do you need?" I may hate her guts, but if this is the truth, it's all to keep a kid out of the hands of an absolute egotistical creepy tyrant of a man. She took another deep breath, allowing relief to peer through.

"I need to go to Illium immediately. I need to be there personally while Cerberus moves my family and keep his agents at bay."

"Then Joker will set course. Should arrive sometime tomorrow morning."

"Thank you, Shepard."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

Surprisingly, or perhaps not all that surprising, once again our docking fees were waived, courtesy of Liara, and in the same docking complex as before. Miranda's contact was an Asari named Lanteia and would be meeting us at the lounge on the trading floor, Eternity. We would only be getting one Skycar to use to keep things inconspicuous, so that did limit my options for the team. Garrus is a must have, as is Miranda of course, since this is her mission. I'd say that leaves us covered for both tech and firepower. True, Miranda is a capable biotic, but aside from that being just one of us, she's also not a dedicated biotic. Hence, Samara.

The four of us hurried along to eternity and I allowed Miranda to lead the way. Miranda had requested I give them minimal information, and, this once, I'll respect her request. All they know is that Miranda's younger sister is being tracked by their fucked up dad and we're making sure they relocate safely. We entered the lounge, and Miranda led us in a beeline towards the private booths towards the back, and to one with a purple skinned Asari. The moment the doors closed behind us; she spoke.

"Ms. Lawson. Glad you made it. There's a complication. You listed a man named Niket as your trusted source? He contacted me minutes ago, a warning that Eclipse Mercenaries are making a sweep. The VIPs are still safe, at least for the time being. Niket suggested that the mercs are watching for you explicitly and has offered to escort the VIPs to the terminal instead." Niket is a new name to me, but Lawson can keep her secrets. If there's shit she doesn't want to tell me, fine. I'm here to help the kid.

"Is there anything else you can say regarding the Mercenaries?" Lawson asked.

"No. I can confirm that they are Eclipse and are working for the organization you warned us about. If you wish, I can alert the authorities, but the Eclipse have yet to do anything illegal."

"No, their involvement would only further complicate this. We can handle this ourselves. Follow Niket's suggestion. We'll take the car and draw their attention. Have Niket escort them to the shuttle, not just the Terminal, and give him full access to the itinerary, just to be safe," she insisted. Well she trusts this Niket an awful lot.

"Understood, ma'am. Your skycar is waiting at the lot on the other side of the trading floor." Miranda quickly led us out of the booth so Lanteia could probably make a call.

"So, the plan is to get shot down while your sister fly's off then?" Garrus remarked. "Sounds normal enough for us. As bad a sign as that probably is."

"The Eclipse have orders to take her alive. They'll have reason to believe she might be with us. They won't take lethal risks," Lawson responded.

"Well that takes the fun out of it," Garrus feigned a whine. We made our way quickly to the skycar lot and Miranda seemingly already knew precisely which skycar was for us. Naturally, she took the driver's seat.

"Shepard, I know you hate me. But I appreciate this. Eclipse wasn't part of the plan. But you aren't part of theirs," she spoke quietly as the skycar lifted off and she took us on our way. I thought for a moment, releasing a breath.

"I think you're either delusional or simply blinding yourself, Miranda. But I don't hate you. By some definitions, maybe. But not mine. I hate that symbol on your chest piece. And the man behind it even more. You frustrate me to hell and back and sometimes straight up piss me off, but it's not a hate of you."

"Why?" she asked. I thought a moment longer.

"You're not an idiot, Miranda. You wouldn't have gotten where you are or accomplished what you have if you were. You brought me back from the dead for fuck's sake," I chuckled, in spite of myself. "But you've heard me recount the crimes of Cerberus, at least those that I know about, a million and one times. I don't hate you, Miranda, because you believe such actions, such events, are abhorrent and monstrous. What pisses me off, is that for someone so smart, someone who's probably well versed in Espionage, continuously searches desperately for the most paper thin reasoning or tiniest shred of circumstantial evidence to absolve Cerberus of those crimes and pin them on someone or something else instead because you feel like you owe them. You're not in disagreement, you're in denial."

"I…" she began, but paused.

"If you want to argue it with me, fine, I'll let this one happen. But only after we save your sister. Keeping the kid safe is more important right now. Agreed?" Miranda took a deep breath.

"Agreed."

Miranda continued taking us to the spaceport that her sister and her family would be making use of. Not a commercial spaceport, like where the Normandy was docked, but Ilium's Mass Transport hub. There might be smaller ones scattered across the planet. Think of the airports on Earth before Humans gained spaceflight. The airport in Atlanta Georgia was a hub that could get you a direct flight almost anywhere on the planet. And if there was a destination it didn't, it connected right to another hub that would. This is the same thing, except on a Galactic scale. Our trip there, as relatively short as it was, was silent after our little discussion. Until a squadron of Eclipse gunships flew by as the transport hub was coming into view. Nothing needed to be said, but Miranda obviously sped us up significantly. One went down to what appeared to be one of the luggage/cargo areas. Not terribly sure what to call it, honestly.

"Plan of action?"

"They're looking for me? They'll find me. I'm setting down behind the gunship," Miranda began as the gunship began offloading mercs. "In cover. Hopefully they really do want me alive," she remarked. Miranda arced the skycar down, the mercs noticing rather quickly.

And opening fire. Cursing, Miranda arced the skycar back up as something broke, the skycar staggering and beginning to plummet as, hopefully a good sign, the Eclipse stopped shooting. But we were quite clearly crashing. On the plus side, we crashed more or less where we intended, with the car right-side up. There were still crates

"Thanks fate. Very convenient," I muttered as the skycar doors opened and we launched out and into the cover of the cargo and shipping containers in the area. Well, Garrus and I did, but Miranda and Samara stood, Miranda slowly approaching. I glanced up over cover to see that a man in Eclipse uniform, an officer of some degree. And he gestured for his mercs to lower their weapons.

"You're not shooting. So you know who I am," Miranda called out. Gingerly, I stood from my own cover. I certainly wouldn't complain about the fact that the gunship was now taking off and leaving.

"Yeah, said you'd be around. Must be the bitch that kidnapped our client's little girl." Miranda scoffed.

"Of course that's the lie he told you. This is a family matter. Take your men and leave." The Eclipse officer grinned, confident.

"Think you got it all sorted, do you? We're already moving in on the kid. We know about Niket, he won't be helping you." Well, just go and lay out all your cards why don't you? "Nobody's going to get killed unless you all do stupid shit."

"My sister won't endure what I had to. Leave." Miranda warned. The officer crossed his arms over his chest.

"I was ordered to give you one chance to walk away. But this whole time, my men have been lining up their shots." He was stepping awfully close to Miranda. And in the back, I could see a squad of Eclipse with snipers, curiously on the same level as we were. And far to the left, a crane moving what looks to be a fuel container. It'll go right over their heads. "I give the word, and we unleash hell on your squad. So, you leave." Now.

"Grab him," I ordered through squad comms as I began dumping my entire clip into the crane. Miranda pistol whipped the officer, using the momentum to take him and use him as a meat shield. The crane released the fuel while Miranda, with her meat shield, gunned down the Eclipse mercs that remained close to their officer. Slapping in another clip, I opened fire on the fuel canister, igniting it right behind the snipers, the explosion killing the four of them, one just being blasted far towards us, a leg torn off in the blast. A Salarian between us and the snipers, considering one was blasted right beside him, appeared to start rethinking his life decisions. Before anything could come of it, however, he was enveloped in biotics and nearly flattened into a pancake against a nearby wall, courtesy of Samara. Well, that's the first squad taken care of. Miranda led us forward, past where the snipers had been, and around the corner. It appears that the detonation had blasted one of the merc's helmets around the corner, and its comms unit was intact, trying to broadcast to the now unresponsive team. No one needed to say anything, the boon was obvious, Miranda retrieving the comm unit and patching us in. Nothing important being said yet.

"Just how old is your sister now?" I asked. Are we saving a child? A teen? Young adult?

"Nearly nineteen. I'm sorry, too many would use her against me, I have a habit of leaving her as a strictly need-to-know. I should have just told you."

"And why exactly did you take her?" Garrus asked.

"I'm not the first 'daughter' that my father made, just the first he kept. Oriana was my replacement. I was completely isolated from the outside world. No friends, impossible demands with physical punishments for failure."

"You know, sometimes I think the Normandy isn't so much a crew as it is a large group of people with daddy issues," Garrus remarked.

"Both of my parents were Asari," Samara stated calmly.

"See? Not even _Samara_ has a father! Let alone a good relationship with one!" I admit I couldn't help but smirk. And… I think even Samara found humor.

"So, new plan?" I asked Miranda.

"Here, this should be an elevator," she gestured at a nearby door, already starting to approach. She continued speaking as the doors opened, proving her right and she selected a floor. "I reviewed the specs of the entire complex. We need to cut through the cargo processing yard to get to Oriana. If not for our Skycar getting shot down this would be faster."

"And what of Niket? Trust him still?"

"He's the one friend I was ever able to make while under my father, and the only person I didn't cut ties with when I fled, and one of the few who knows what he's truly like. I refuse to believe he'd be complicit in sending Oriana to him. I trusted him with my life when I ran from my father. He won't betray me now." I simply nodded, and the elevator soon came to a stop. There was a conveyor line ahead, cranes carrying large, heavy pieces of cargo, obviously designated for freighters opposed to transports. Need to time our shots, as there were Eclipse on the opposite side. Waiting. There was cover for us, but we had to run up first. Just-

Fuck, my shields up and vanished, an overload, forcing them to cycle and leaving me vulnerable. I dropped to the ground as bullets whizzed overhead, Garrus and Miranda doing the same. Samara didn't technically use shields, her barrier being stronger than any personal shields. Fortunately, she realized we had all hit the ground, so she stopped, and with a wave of her arms, formed a barrier in front of all of us. Letting us get back to our feet and progressing forward to actual cover. The Eclipse tried to break through the barrier, but Christ Samara is powerful. With their ambush thwarted, our job was a lot easier. Samara and Miranda working together to either leave the Eclipse vulnerable, or a biotic detonation to take out the cluster of Eclipse techs that overloaded our shields. The moment they were dead, we pushed on to the next conveyor belt. The Eclipse had a line of LOKI's waiting for us, and beginning their fire. But before our shields collapsed, Samara brought back her barrier and tech attacks from the rest of us made very short work of them. Only a token force of Eclipse waited on the other side of the conveyor, relying more on the mechs for their firepower, and drastically shorthanded without them. Garrus braining one of them, and Miranda simply flinging the other off the platform with her biotics. Finally, the comm unit told us something useful.

"Divert everyone except my personal guard from Niket. I'll handle him and the kid personally." An Asari, the Eclipse Captain Enyala ordered her troops. And now we were closing in on the next elevator, but the remaining Eclipse were making this very tedious for us. Stalling, which is all they needed. They had a lot of tech savvy troops, overloading our shields or harassing us with combat drones. At least there was little they could do to stop the biotics. We were still making progress, but Garrus and I were having a hard time assisting whenever our shields got overloaded. By the time we reached the elevator, another squad was exiting it. Finally allowing Garrus and I to actually shoot since now they were being taken off guard.

"The Eclipse have attempted to slow your advance by locking down the elevators," EDI informed. "I have overridden their attempts." AI cyberwarfare is quite the trump card. As we were taking down the last of the merc's present, Enyala updated her forces again.

"Niket has reached the terminal. He'll switch the family over to our transport and then extract."

"No… they must be tricking him. Or lying to throw us off," Miranda murmured as we ran to the elevator. Miranda inputting the proper destination. I'm guessing either the last layer of the loading bay or even wherever the Eclipse have their transport. "Damn it, why won't thins piece of shit go any faster?!" she exclaimed, slamming on the haptic interface.

"Did he know about Oriana?" I asked.

"No, he only learned recently. It was too personal to involve anyone."

"Miranda…" I was able to stop the groan from becoming evident, but, once again for someone so smart… "You really should have told him long ago. Repeat what you just said to yourself."

"I… I admit I never really thought about it, but he knew my father, Shepard. He'd have to understand! He knows everything I went through."

"You didn't trust him enough to tell him, Miranda. Whatever the justifications, that would have stung. How much do you think he might be questioning?"

"My father is a monster, Shepard! He knows that, I trust him," Miranda glared. Evidently not as much as she claims.

"I hope I'm wrong." The elevator came to a stop, and the doors opened. Past the doors was an Asari woman, wearing the uniform of the transport hub and holding a data pad mid conversation with another Asari in Eclipse uniform sitting on a crate, and a human man beside the Eclipse. Obviously, that has to be Niket. His clothes looked a bit patchy, but with attempts to make it look nice at least. Work pants, boots, and a worn polo a size or two too large.

"Miri…" Niket spoke quietly, a sad look on his face as he stared at Miranda. The merc, Enyala I'd bet, smirked, sliding off the crate and too her feet.

"This should be fun, as she pulled a Claymore shotgun from her back. I assume modified so that the knockback wouldn't blast her arm off. Garrus and I took aim at the merc, Samara's biotics flaring. Enyala, gave a sideways glance at the worker, who immediately started to bolt for it terrified. She smirked, and began turning her Claymore to the side. No you fucking don't. Commence mag dump.

"Shit!" Enyala exclaimed as she stopped her attempt at playtime before Garrus joined his gunfire to mine, her barriers broke down, and she was riddled with bullets, falling to the ground.

"Niket... You sold me out," Miranda murmured. Shaking her head. With the Eclipse dead, I lowered my weapon. But not putting it away yet. "Why? After everything, why?"

"You wanted to leave, Miri! That was your choice! I had no idea you were stealing a baby!"

"Steal her?!" Miranda shouted. "I was saving my sister!"

"From a life of health and wealth and happiness? You were getting back at your father," Niket accused.

"Happiness?" Miranda scoffed. "You know him. How'd he turn you?"

"He told me," Niket's voice softened. "He told me that you kidnapped your baby sister all those years ago. They said I could help get her back peacefully, without any trauma to the family. I told them to go to hell, that you would never do such a thing. Then you tell me as much yourself?" Niket shook his head. "I called them back the same night."

"And why not me? Everything we've been through, you could have let me explain!" she exclaimed, cracks in her voice.

"And how could I trust you anymore? You never told me anything about your sister. You never told me you were with a terrorist organization! Instead your father was the first to tell me! For everything about the man that you so fervently hate, why are you so insufferably similar?"

"Don't. Compare. Me. To him. Ever," Miranda murmured.

"All of that aside," I interrupted, trying to keep this from getting too heated. "She's been with this family all her memory."

"But her father can still give her a better life," Niket argued, calming down.

"You don't know what he wants from her," Miranda growled.

"I know that I've been poor, Miri. I didn't exactly care for it. She'll never go sick or hungry."

"She never has! I've seen to that! He wants to take a girl from the only family she's ever known to use as a tool! Doesn't that tell you everything about him?" Miranda shouted again; gun still pointed at Niket.

"How much does her father know?" I asked Niket. He glanced down a moment.

"Only that I knew where she was. I knew you have spy programs in your father's systems, Miri," he started to approach. "So I kept it private. I'm the only one who knows." Miranda paused a moment, a tear going down her face.

"I'm sorry, Niket." Damn it, Miranda don-

A shot rang out. Niket slumped to the floor. The silence was deafening as Lawson returned her pistol to its holster.

"You didn't need to do that," I stated, biting my tongue to keep the fury out. She's a killer.

"You already regret it," Garrus added. Lawson didn't say a word. Just began walking towards the elevator to the public areas, where Oriana's family will probably be waiting.

"I need to check on her," she spoke quietly. Fine. We followed, silently. I leaned against the wall of the elevator. She has utterly disappointed me. Perhaps proven me wrong about some of the good I thought I saw in her. The elevator shortly came to a stop and we exited into a crowd. Clearly, Lawson knew where they would be, and made her way in that direction. Across the crowd, waiting at a terminal and talking to an older man and woman, was the near spitting image of Lawson, dressed as a civilian. Her hair was shorter, she had more of a tan, and she looked happy. Lawson did a visual scan of the terminal, before returning her gaze to her sister. The sad look remaining. "No sign of Eclipse. We… we should go."

"Fine, I grunted, already moving along the paths to the terminal's exits. But Garrus, behind me, I noticed stop Lawson.

"Shepard kept me from the first regret you made today. Don't make this your second. Believe me, I know how badly this one will hurt." Right, he is strained with his family.

"The less she knows about me, the better. She has a family and a life. I'll just complicate it all."

"Then drop the details. But every night I wonder if my family even knows how much I care for them," Garrus argued, still holding her back. I don't know if my little sister knows how much her older brother would do for her. And that's all my fault. If she knows she has an older sister who loves her, it'll only be good for her." Garrus released Lawson. "Make your choice." He turned and followed, Samara, Garrus, and I leaving Lawson to make that choice.


	51. Like Father Like Daughter

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Almost forgot to get this chapter up tonight. My bad. But it's done, a bit on the shorter side, but things are developing. And I'm developing to 20 on the 20th. Neat. The whoops 'chapter' about missing the upload will be going down later.  
**

 **The Illusive Man**

This was not the desired outcome. While Henry Allgood is again in talks with Cerberus to secure our funding, a demand that I may be able to talk him out of, for now, is another lead on Oriana. Of course, I know where she and her family are off to, but with how heavily Lawson has closed her net on that information, that's not information I can provide without giving her a reason to implicate me. I may be willing to reconsider her value to my organization after the Collector threat has been neutralized. Besides, if she dies, a corpse has no value to me. However, while Lawson performed as she was trained to, I had gambled on Niket either keeping his changed loyalties disguised or at least killed by Eclipse if he began to crack. And now, any progress Shepard and Operative Lawson had built towards trust was all but severed. While I heavily suspect that Lawson will remain grateful to have had Shepard's aid in rescuing Oriana, the Commander now views her as a killer and likely reverted to viewing her as a tool of Cerberus. This may be the truth, but not one for Shepard to focus on. Ironic, considering the Assassin and Mercenary he is cooperative with among the crew. To say nothing of the Juvenile Krogan or merciless Justicar. He surrounds himself with killers and tools yet due to Lawson's ties to my organization, she is the only one he views negatively.

I took a long drag of my cigarette, followed by a gulp of whiskey, the light of a massive star behind me in my office. I suppose I have no choice now but to wait and see what develops.

* * *

 **Miranda Lawson**

It had been a full twenty-four hours since we had kept my sister out of our father's hands. Since I had spoken to her for the first time. And since I had killed Niket. Despite how relieved I am that Ori is safe and thankful to the Tur… Garrus, for encouraging me to speak with her. And yet, I just feel numb. Part of me keeps saying that I had no choice, another that he didn't need to die. That just talking a few minutes longer. Niket didn't pose an immediate threat. But he was a leak of vital information. I shot him dead like I did Wilson back after Shepard woke up. Like so many others before him. Like I was trained to do. Yet Niket was the first to get me to… react. At all. I suppose that's hardly surprising; he was the only one I had ever killed I had a true connection with. And of course, something else he said stuck with me still. Stinging. 'For everything about the man that you so fervently hate, why are you so insufferably similar?' He would have shot Niket, wouldn't he? Without hesitation. He'd keep the same secrets, from people just as trusted. If he even can trust. And yet again, Shepard is right. For all the trust I did put into Niket, I didn't trust him enough to tell him about Oriana until I needed his help with her.

But isn't that my training? How to properly handle confidential information to ensure that it stays confidential? Why did it seemingly betray me this time?

Because that's a business practice. It works in organizations to safeguard statistical information. Not moral quandaries involving the life of a young woman. And especially not with your oldest and most trusted friend that you once called something more than a friend. Just like your father, you view everything like a business transaction. Even your visits to 'dating' sites are treated as a business meeting. You're more of a cold and calculating machine born out of a test tube than you are human. And no matter how much you try not to be, again and again, you prove yourself capable of carrying on your father's filthy fucking legacy.

Sitting at my desk, I stared down my breathing halting. God… how did I let this happen to myself? When I fled from my father, I wanted to do everything different than him. I put my life into Cerberus because I was doing something for far more than just petty self-interest, but all of Humanity. Regardless of any doubts, Shepard tries to give me, that was still my motivation. Yet it seems despite my good intentions, my methods have shifted to be nearly identical to those of my father. And…

Say it. You know it's true. After all this time you've realized. You made the connection. You can't unmake it.

...And Cerberus has encouraged those methods. For better or worse, the same methods as my father, maybe that's why I excelled because I was already… hard-wired to be like him. My heart sank. My mouth went dry. I felt my stomach clench, threatening to expel my lunch. The dam in my mind was cracking.

If Cerberus trains for the same behavior, the same mentalities, what else do they do that's the same? After all, he views that rabid dog Kai Leng as his top assassin. Unquestioning blind loyalty, dogmatic. Just as you have been. You know what that dog is capable of, and that the Illusive Man overlooks it because of the value he believes Leng provides. What else is The Illusive Man willing to allow, or even encourage if it seems valuable enough? I stood firm by the claim that the exposure of Human colonists to Dragon's Teeth to observe indoctrination and… justification to be the actions of a rogue cell. That the moral abomination that it was outweighed the value. Father wouldn't have thought so. Perhaps Cerberus didn't either. Akuze? The experiments Shepard uncovered on Noveria? He claimed Cerberus had a hand in those. Resurrecting the Rachni to be an expendable army of drones and developing bioweapons. I can see the practical value, but the risks were great. But Cerberus took some, transporting them? Seeding them near an Alliance outpost? Would it have been meant as a field test? Then what value in repeating the Akuze experiment? It revealed themselves to Kahoku and then killed him by experimenting on him, then throwing his body to be food for other test subjects. Again, all of these stories I had believed to be rogue cells if Cerberus at all. But my father is far from above such twisted experimentations. With what they already share with my father, and regardless of intents to better humanity… what stops Cerberus from doing such atrocities themselves? If everyone is trained to be a cold-blooded machine and killer, morality becomes a minor concern.

Oh god…

The door to my office opened, snapping my attention away from my fracturing mind to my surroundings. And the person to step through the door, wearing a smirk, was arguably the last person I expected to see. Jack. And why was she wearing that smirk?

"Cheerleader," the door closed behind her, her arms crossed over her close-to-bare chest

"What do you want, Jack?" I asked, releasing a pent up breath.

"Just wanted to come and see the killer for myself," she mocked. "Who'd have fucking thought. Between the two of us. You were the one to gun down the poor and defenseless, All that shit you talked," her smirk grew wider. Of course, this happens now. I'll just not respond, not give her the pleasure. "Don't you remember? How I was the unruly criminal, the psychopath. While you and the rest of the crew were all the sane and just and benevolent. Funny how that's worked out isn't it?" She'll go away. "And he helped you out big time, didn't he? Saved your life, or something like that? Must have owed him big. Guess not enough to let him live, huh? What was he to you anyway? Old friend? Maybe your boyfriend."

"Just stop," I murmured.

"You know how many times I asked, hell, begged the same fucking thing to Cerberus on Pragia? In case you can't tell, that never exactly worked. A little girl begging for the big bad men to stop putting needles in me. Stop cutting me open. To stop beating me. And here you are, a grown woman absorbed by her own 'perfection,'" she mocked. "Just asking for the mean lady to stop saying mean words hurting her feelings. Oh, you certainly deserve a break more than I ever did."

"Get out," I growled.

"Don't feel like it. Admit what Cerberus did to me was wrong. Not that bullshit about it being a rogue cell." I flared my biotics as a warning, standing from my desk.

"Touch me, and I will smear the walls with you, murdering cheerleader bitch." With my biotics, I pushed her back towards the door, taking the time that put her off balance to stand on the other side of my desk, closer to the external hull. I heard the door to my office open, but I was staring down Jack as she, snarling, took one of the office chairs and flung it at me. I simply sidestepped as it impacted the wall.

"Stand the fuck down, both of you!" a voice boomed, furious. Shepard.

"Cheerleader won't admit what Cerberus did to me was wrong," Jack crossed her arms over her chest again. Naturally, she came to me intending to antagonize. Though I did let my composure break.

"It wasn't Cerberus. Not in truth," I closed my eyes for a moment. That same voice talking to me earlier scoffed.

You don't really believe that anymore. Damn it get out of my head.

"But clearly you were a mistake." Jack had begun pacing back and forth, but at that, spun on a dime, staring me down, jabbing an accusing finger at me. Admittedly, that didn't come out as I meant.

"Fuck you, bitch! Maybe-"

"I. Said. Enough. Both of you. Shut the fuck up. And listen," Shepard demanded. "You two want to keep hating each other, fine. But in case you've forgotten, there's only a few billion lives on the line with this mission. So, unless you both want to find your asses booted off of my ship, unless you don't want to do some goddamn good for this galaxy, be adults, and put it the fuck aside. You don't have to talk to each other, you don't even have to look at each other. But so long as you are on my ship, so long as you are a member of my team, you won't be trying to kill each other. I am running a military ship here, not a fucking kindergarten. Do I make myself clear?!" he ended with a shout.

"Sir, yes sir," I answered.

"Fine," Jack.

"That is not the proper response to your Commanding Officer, Jack. Try again." Jack twitched, angry.

"Sir. Yes. Sir." She managed.

"Good. Now get the fuck out. I'll deal with you later." Jack stormed out of my office as I remained in place. The door closed behind Shepard and he pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing. "I don't care that Jack initiated this. I'm still fucking pissed. At you and her. Tell me what the hell this was about." I took a deep breath, looking down as I returned to my seat at my desk.

"Niket. She came in, taunting me about how she could show mercy. But I couldn't. Throwing my own words towards her back at me."

"And?"

"And… it just so happened a lot of what she's said is rather similar to the thoughts that have been running through my head."

Shepard relaxed, but only ever so slightly.

"I can't say you don't deserve it, Miranda. Not for that. But it wasn't right of Jack, nor her place. Lock your door, and keep thinking hard about it, about yourself. We're en route to see if Jacob's father is still alive. Maybe call him down to chat. I figure he was your moral compass anyways." Without anything more, Shepard turned and left.


	52. King

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: A fucking week late but here we go. It's here. Bruh. I changed a few things about the loyalty mission (some clever ideas from Palaven helped well with that.) I hope you appreciate it getting some extra fucked up. And there should be a chapter up for y'all next monday too. Might have a thing or two to say at the end.**

 **Commander John Shepard**

The Rosetta Nebula. Alpha Draconis. 2175 Aeia. This cluster alone is already on the edge of the frontier of the Terminus, not to mention along the outer rim of the Galaxy. As for Alpha Draconis, it only has two planets, and none are officially named. Aeia is the planet that Jacob's father was a crewmember of a ship sent to investigate. Hugo Gernsback. Strange name. A cursory search tells me that it's named after a science-fiction based Magazine writer and publisher. The ship's captain is Harris Fairchild and it's privately owned. So, a contract survey. Crew of a few hundred, and a few hundred more security mechs to protect the crew. Those, after all, can be stored much more tightly. Obviously, these wouldn't be LOKI mechs, but their predecessor of ten years ago. Namely, the ATHENA mech. Hm, and they also have an ARES as well. The YMIR predecessor. And the FENRIR didn't have a predecessor ten years ago. And just what kind of planet are we looking at, exactly?

We were close to entering orbit, dropping out of FTL early so that EDI could run scans of the planet and try to find the Gernsback. The planetary evaluation was already completed, and forwarded to me as I prepared for the mission, and prepared to select my team. The planet is well within the Goldilocks zone, and similar in size to Earth. It's three and a half more AU away from its star than Earth, but that's manageable for planets. Oceans of liquid water and a thin nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere. Earth like in that regard too. Gravity is a decimal point higher than on Earth, but the atmo pressure is just over a quarter less. Scans as we get closer show ample signs of flora, meaning this planet will probably be ripe with Colonists not terribly long after we send these scans back to the Alliance. Finally, landmass. There doesn't appear to be any real continents across the entirety of the planet. Large islands that may be clustered similar to, say, Hawaii but just on a much larger scale. There doesn't appear to be a single stand-alone landmass larger than Australia. I'm not sure what percentage of the planet's surface is water, but it's sure as hell more than Earth.

The file updated, EDI had located a distress beacon and pinpointed it along the coast of one of the larger islands in the northern hemisphere. To her evaluation, this planet is otherwise entirely untouched. So, what team am I going for then… Jacob is a given, since we are here to find his father. Jack and Miranda are absolutely staying on the ship, I don't want to deal with either of them right now. I already chewed out Miranda, then went easy on her after her explanation. Still, calling Jack a mistake? What happened to her was, not the woman herself. Speaking of, I chewed her out just as bad. Worse, honestly, as she obviously initiated, trying to get something petty and childish out of it, and it didn't happen that, at least allegedly, Jack was already giving herself shit for anything like Miranda was. It more or less boiled down to Jack still needing to grow up past her playground behavior. I'm hardly a religious man, but I appreciate a specific biblical quote from Jesus. No idea where exactly in it that the quote is, but… let he who is without sin cast the first stone. Or something like that. Sure, maybe I have the sin of… I guess Wrath when it comes to Cerberus. Or Elanos Haliat. Batarian Slavers, but I still feel perfectly justified in "casting the first stone" against Slavers and Cerberus. Or Pedophiles, Rapists, Mass Murderers like Morinth. But the point is that Jack doesn't have a lot of room to talk shit about Miranda for killing Niket. Not after however many unnecessary kills Jack has made in the past. Just because she's now being guided towards the right path doesn't mean she has the right to taunt someone who isn't. It's weird, and a bit contradictory if you look at it hard enough, but that's just life and humanity. Everything is some shade of grey.

Right, the ground team. Jacob, Garrus… Tali would be good for the mechs, Mordin, I think. If anyone has survived this long, they're probably more or less fine anyways. But Murphy's law would dictate that if I don't bring him along for medical attention, then some poor sod is going to really need it. And maybe Samara. Murphy's law again, if survivors need protection, she'll be good for it. And that should cover things. The crew was notified of the selection, and instructed to meet me in the shuttle bay once they're ready. I'll brief them on the way down to the surface. Like normal, I was the first to arrive, armed and armored. The others followed as they were ready and we entered the shuttle, myself taking my place in the cockpit. The moment the door to the shuttle closed, just as I was about to take off and begin the briefing, there was a shimmer in the air beside me, catching me by surprise as a small Japanese woman deactivated her cloak.

"Jesus, Kasumi," I exclaimed.

"Ha, got you that time," she winked. "Mind if I tag along?"

"I mean… if you want to," I shrugged, brow raised at her. "You realize you could have just asked me before sneaking onto the shuttle. Like… any relatively sensible person?"

"When did I ever strike you as one of those?" she joked. "Thanks, Shep. I owe you one." Kasumi turned and left the cockpit; I heard the surprise of the others as the door shut behind her. Well then. Let's get the briefing started…

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

The Gernsback had crash landed more or less directly in the water off a cliffside along the island coast and appears to be split into two, but otherwise intact. Fortunate for the crew. Assuming supplies have held up and they've been able to forage, survival is very likely, the crash should have caused minimal casualties. Strangely, they should have been found by now. Even in space, ten years with a distress beacon active, there's still a relay system, however frontier that it is, nearby. Someone should have found them. We'll get those answers soon enough. There was a small clearing along the coastal cliffs that I was going down to land on. Sunny day, clear skies, and some avian life flying in a flock towards the water. Once we had landed, I opened the shuttle doors and we all disembarked. Despite the hospitable atmosphere, we were still wearing our helmets. Standard procedure, and we started making our way towards the wreckage of the ship.

"Ten years, right?" Garrus asked. "And clearly the beacon is active. So why are we the first to find them?"

"Might not be first," Mordin suggested. "No, pirates, slavers, others would not activate distress beacon of Hugo Gernsback."

"They certainly survived the crash, there's no doubt there," Tali added. We were getting closer to the ship now; damage and wear were becoming apparent. "I see damage in line with atmospheric re-entry and crash, but look, sections of hull are simply missing, leaving behind even, artificial gaps. The ship has been stripped, at least partially. Perhaps the beacon was damaged, and they needed to repair it?"

"But it's a distress beacon. And ten years. Those are built to survive crashes, and it's not like it would need rare components. A transmitter essentially," Kasumi answered. "Sure, maybe it was damaged, it's happened before. But either it would have been repaired before long, or they'd have had so much bad luck that they'd never be able to repair it. Nothing that would take ten years to repair."

"Bottom line, it doesn't add up," Jacob spoke up.

"Commander," EDI began. The VI systems of the Hugo Gernsback are partially intact and still with power. I shall connect you for questioning."

"Good, thanks EDI," I answered. A moment passed before the synthetic, monotone voice of a VI began.

"Repeat: Toxicology alert! Danger of Rapid neural decay. Local flora unfit for human consumption. Override. Beacon resumed. Pause time, eight years, two hundred thirty-seven days, seven hours."

"Beacon _paused?_ " Garrus stressed the word.

"VI, why was the beacon paused?" I questioned.

"Pause in beacon protocol, eight years, two hundred thirty-seven days, seven hours. Pause is recorded as: _Record Deleted_ by Acting Captain Ronald Taylor."

"What the fuck is it about the universe that of course my father is involved with whatever took so long for anyone to find them?" Jacob murmured.

"Fate likes to screw with the Normandy crew," Garrus shrugged.

"And 'Acting Captain.' My father was first officer. What happened to the Captain?" Jacob questioned.

"What happened to Captain Fairchild?" I repeated for the VI.

"Captain Harris Fairchild died from wounds sustained during the crash of the Hugo Gernsback. Ronald Taylor was promoted to Acting Captain under emergency command protocols. Other flagged issues: Unsafe deceleration. Local food and neural decay. Beacon Activation protocols."

"Explain the unsafe deceleration." Obviously, it was the crash. But what caused it?

"Following an unspecified impact and sub light drive failure, the Hugo Gernsback made an unscheduled descent at four hundred sixty-five percent of theoretical recommended sub-orbital velocity. The Hugo Gernsback then decelerated at seven hundred eighty-two percent of theoretical recommended approach velocity, sustaining significant damage to investment and crew." Well, that didn't answer anything.

"Explain the relation between the local flora and neural decay."

"Impairment of mental function due to chemical imbalance begins within seven days of ingesting local flora, regardless of decontamination or preparation. Impact on higher cognitive abilities and long-term memory is cumulative, but significant within a standard month. It is unknown if neural decay is permanent. Data collection was incomplete." Troubling, to say the least.

"Why was the beacon only recently activated?"

"Emergency beacon became functional after three hundred fifty-eight days, twelve hours following the unscheduled suborbital descent of the Hugo Gernsback. Activation was triggered remotely after eight years, two hundred thirty-seven days, seven hours on the authority of acting Captain Ronald Taylor."

"So, he survived that long," Jacob began. "Does it mean eight years after the crash or after the beacon repairs?"

"Vi, clarify. Was the beacon activated eight years after the crash, or eight years after the beacon became functional?"

"The beacon was activated nine years, two hundred thirty days, nineteen hours after the unscheduled suborbital descent of the Hugo Gernsback, and eight years, two hundred thirty-seven days, seven hours following beacon functionality."

"Where is the crew?"

"Unknown. This beacon has been unattended for several maintenance cycles."

"Great. How convenient. Mordin, can you take some samples to analyze? At least find out if it's permanent first."

"Will do what I can until back at lab. Send results to Lia to use in simulations and lab equipment," the doctor answered.

"Good. Everyone, I've no clue how exactly the neural decay is affecting these people. If they're hostile, non-lethal takedowns only."

"Ah, civilians gone crazy and trying to kill us while we knock them out all because of a plant. Just like old times," Garrus remarked.

"If only we had those grenades to knock them out like before," Tali added.

"We'll just have to settle for concussive rounds. Mordin, got anything you can use to put them to sleep?"

"Of course. Have used Omni-tool to resuscitate patients. Can easily calibrate to work as taser. Have before."

"Chatika can do the same," Tali began, tossing out her round holographic pet.

"Who knew I'd be so useful on this mission, eh Shep?" Kasumi joked. It's good that it won't be too hard to shift to non-lethal. It'll slow us down a bit, but we can manage. It might be Garrus and I that will be the most ineffective. Our concussion rounds are essentially rubber bullets, but they're inconvenient with the thermal clip system. They're bulkier, and we can only load one at a time, and only so many are ever carried. On my belt, I've got twenty, Garrus I think has twelve.

"Follow the shore. Keep your eyes out for signs of civvies," I ordered, and began leading the squad. Supplies and crates and scrap pulled from the wreckage had been sorted and stacked a short way down. Not sure how long ago, but it probably would have required coherence, so my guess would be earlier on. For now, we kept our weapons stowed. If they have firearms, they will likely be in… horrendous condition. Minimal ammunition, and significantly weaker than our weapons. In addition to being less effective against our barriers. We could take the hits to react accordingly for the benefit of keeping them more at ease. As if on cue, a woman, her face filled with a childlike awe stood. Light skin, but dirty. Her hair messy and long. Topless, and with a grass skirt, no shoes.

"You! Metal men came from the sky! The King said someone would come! He delayed for so long, but he still has power!" she smiled wide. The king? Jesus, what's those marks on her arm? Where her arm meets her shoulder there's a marking, a scar more like, burn scar. A crude circle with… the letter C? But with another scar layered on top of it, an X as if to cross it out, while below it is another crude circle with a crude square within. Has she been branded? "Some are lied to. The hunters. The princes have locked the king away, and told the hunters that the sky would bring the loss of our king. They won't let you take him."

"It's ok. We're here to help. What's going on?" I asked gently.

"I…" she closed her eyes, head down as if forcing herself to think. "I don't know how… how to say it. He's our king. And we serve so… so we can go home. Some wanted to fight him. Long ago. They were… cast out. Now we all love him. But the princes… he trusted them, but they are evil. They… don't want to leave, but are afraid of killing the king." Hm, speaking of those hunters she mentioned… There was a man approaching from behind, angry, the hair on his head roughly cut aside from the middle of the head, shirtless, grass skirt, and crude white body paint. The woman continued to talk while I watched the man. "They don't believe rescue will come." His right arm raised as took aim with… is that a slingshot?

"Get down!" I called out, shoving the woman aside as he launched a rock at me. It was small, and moved just barely fast enough to register for the barriers to deflect. Not like it would have mattered, wouldn't even scratch my armor. Others came in behind him, similar in dress and decoration, but armed instead with rudimentary weapons. Axes and spears made using scrap metal from the wreckage. There were… I'd say eight of them, and only one other had a slingshot.

"The King is forever! The sky will not have him! Take their wives so that they may serve," the lead hunter ordered. Take their wives? What the fuck?

"Make some dreams, people," I called out. Kasumi activating her cloak, Mordin already sending out a jolt of electricity to one of the spear hunters, and Tali sending Chatika to zap some herself. I managed to fire one concussive round, putting down the lead slingshot hunter, while Garrus fired two, one to the other slingshot hunter, the other to an axe hunter. While Samara used her biotics to knock the heads of two hunters together. Gentle by her standards. Jacob didn't even get a chance himself as Tali and Kasumi quickly put the remaining three to bed. So, nine hunters total. Where did I miss one?

"Did you kill them?" The woman asked.

"No, but they are knocked out. Asleep," I explained. Trying to keep it simple as the neural decay has clearly taken away a lot of their vocabulary.

"Oh. Good. You must help the King. He will make this right." Yeah. Sure he will.

"Where is the king?" I questioned.

"At the top of the island. Follow the beach. You will come to the camp of the Commune first." I will guide you.

"Yeah. Alright." I turned back to the others. "I'm going to hope that if they see faces and not masks, they might react better. Helmets off, we're not in any real danger anyways. Not if our shields block the slingshots. Jacob, who knows, maybe your face will help."

"I'll be sure to get right on that, John," Tali remarked.

"Alright, maybe with one exception," I smirked, taking my own helmet off and clipping it to my belt while the others, aside from Tali, did the same. As Jacob did so, the woman gasped.

"You… you have the King's face!" Jacob visibly grimaced.

"I really wish I didn't hear that. Just… let's just move on." The woman led us along the shore, a natural stone archway ahead leading to what appeared to be a clearing. As we got closer, moving up the hill, a statue made of scrap metal, displaying an angelic figure, and what seemed to be a crowd of figures at its base, on their knees, perhaps in prayer.

"The commune is in prayer. The hunters were trying to protect them and the children. They-"

"Woah hold on. Did you say children?" Kasumi questioned.

"Yes. Their mothers were with child before we came here. They were born here. But the seeds planted within us after our arrival have only been born dead."

"This is all kinds of wrong," Garrus murmured. Yeah. Yeah it really fucking is. We approached the camp, no one noticing us. But everyone, at least the adults, appeared to be women. No men. There were four smaller figures, children. And if the women were already pregnant before the crash, then the children are only around nine or ten, and this is all they know.

"Sisters! The king has called the sky, and the sky has answered! With a hero blessed with the king's face!" The women in prayer were all dressed almost identically to the woman we found on the beach. And all appeared to be branded in some fashion. As the members of the commune approached in awe, staring at Jacob, I could see that the most common brand among them was the one not crossed out was the square within the circle. Three were taking children by the hand to bring them along, while one child was just still sitting in front of the statue. Their back to us, staring at it. Yet the women lined up, side to side. They bowed their heads down, hands out to their sides. The women who brought their children close, the children were left a short way behind the line to watch. One with short hair, the others with long. It was quiet for a full minute while the women remained almost perfectly still.

"What… what are you doing?" I asked.

"He wears the king's face, and you are the saviors from the sky! We are owned by none, and the hunters take us as we please before bringing us back to the Commune. We offer ourselves to be chosen as your wives, as the king and the princes do," one of the women explained.

"Keelah!" Tali exclaimed in disgust. I was just… speechless. This is… a thousand times worse than I expected.

"This is not dissimilar to an Ardat-Yakshi turning remote villages into cults worshipping them. Morinth had done so once before as I hunted her," Samara added. Cutting off any expletives that Jacob looked about ready to explode into, a high pitched voice released an ear piercing scream, the source appearing to be the child who had remained staring at the statue. Now, the head was slightly looking to the side, nothing else about the body's posture indicating that they were the one screaming. Along their line of sight, a small fireteam of practically ancient mechanical figures, clearly struggling to move from wear and tear, and their weapons more likely to misfire than anything else, I'd suspect.

"ATHENA mechs, put em down," I ordered. The team raising their weapons, and moving in to take shots at the security mechs. It felt too easy. Only two shots fired at us before the mechs fell. Yet the child still screamed as one of the women wrapped their arms around the child, in a hug at least, until she went silent. Clearly the toxic plants during the child's development put them somewhere on some spectrum. Once the screaming stopped, another woman tapped me on the shoulder to get my attention. She was dark skinned, her hair messy, but short. Same apparel as the other women.

"The… The kingfaced listens to you. You can save him, bring us home. We were made to eat. To… decay. Here," she handed Jacob an old data pad. "I forgot how to… read… this. But it was…" she struggled consistently to find the words. "Was the start. What he promised, and what… what they did to us. We came from the sky. Take us back to the sky." The data pad was dead, but transferring charge from the Omni-tool was simple. Jacob powered it up and began reading. A grimace quickly spreading across his face.

"It's a crew logbook. They thought the repairs were taking too long and would run out of supplies, lose their minds to the neural decay. My father, and the other officers, kept the ship food for themselves, and everyone else had to eat the local food and hope for treatment. The rest is casualties. Mechs turned against mutineers. Then the crew all fell docile. Apparently, two of the officers, females, attempted to mutiny not long after. It lists one as dead, and one was demoted. Considering what's going on here, I really don't like the sound of what that might mean. As for the remaining officers, my father included, there's six. Only one is female. And the general crew, the males are marked either as hunters, or the women are either assigned to officers or 'communal.'"

"Right. Turian's advocate speaking up," Garrus began. "Just that one, singular decision, restricting the safe food for officers, completely void of anything else that has clearly been going on here, isn't all that unreasonable. Unfortunately, it just so happened to turn out that the Officers involved were disgusting monsters who couldn't hold themselves back the moment a woman seemed defenseless. Which they were."

"Ten years of basically being roofied," Kasumi added. "I might kill your dad, Jacob. No offense."

"Get in line," Jacob murmured.

"I'm still debating whether I'm more disgusted by the situation itself, or that they also decided to throw in a twisted Stockholm syndrome to their haze. Probably to fucking tell themselves that 'oh, it's not so bad, she wants it, see?'"

"Settle for equally disgusting?" Kasumi suggested.

"Works for me," I shrugged.

"Revised plan. See a hunter, keep it non-lethal. See an officer? No need to try so hard." Yeah, these motherfuckers are… kinda evil. Rapists. Sex slavers. Egomaniacs. And if anyone even gives me a fucking hint that the officers have spent time with the children, they're all fucking dead on the spot. Now rather pissed off, we got moving, the women of the commune letting us pass along a route in the jungle further up the island. Almost immediately after passing the bounds of the camp, there was a row of about a dozen or so dirt mounds. None of them marked.

"That's not enough for everyone in the casualty list. Maybe only the compliant got burials," Jacob spoke up. We crested another hill to find a larger fireteam of ATHENA mechs. Yet the only issue they caused for us compared to the last group was using up slightly more time. Otherwise we just kept a move on, turning the next corner along the ridgeline, there were hunters now opposed to guards. Three with slingshots, and a dozen ready for melee. This was potentially the hunter camp, considering the tents and campfires around. And there were two other children with them peeking their heads through tent flaps. Considering the tears in them, they likely were made early after the crash. The Hunters, however, noticed Jacob rather easily. One had some equivalent to palm fronds along the back of his head, more body paint than the others.

"You wear the king's face, imposter! You will not have him!" The slingshots still had no effect while Mordin, Tali, and Kasumi did the most work against the hunters. Garrus and I firing Concussive rounds, Jacob and Samara using biotics for impacts to knock others unconscious. Still, it was Mordin and Tali with the most put down. Not even pausing to investigate anything, we kept moving on. Now there were more constructs, made of metal, a… plaza, with shacks made out of the scrap metal. Five of them, with a wall and gate towards a fifth further back. All between us and what were clearly officer shacks, was an old ARES mech. Shoulder mounted missile pods, a singular glowing eye near the top of the torso, an MG arm, and a grabber arm. Now we had to take cover, as it prepared to fire from the missile pods. Yet, all we heard was a little putting noise, followed by clanging. I peeked up to see that the missile had practically just slid out and fell from the pod. No launch, no detonation. It took aim and tried to fire the MG, yet it just went click. My money is on misfire, else it wouldn't have tried to shoot an empty gun.

"Take it down, but with tech. I'm hoping to catch the bastards in the act rather than with, say, hostages," I ordered. The team obliged, the shields finding themselves overloaded first before the more open network of the ARES mech allowed us to essentially delete its code while it was still online, and it just fell over onto its face. Let's get this over with.

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We worked our way through the officer's shacks first. The male officers surrounded all with a harem of five or six women, the women naked while the men wore grass skirts for… ease of access and were being 'pleasured' in at least some capacity by at least one of the women. Maybe I'll regret not keeping them alive to face trial later, maybe I really am a hypocrite. But these fucking animals were put down before they could put their 'wives' in danger. Unfortunately, the women had to be knocked out as they tried to retaliate, wanting to protect their captor and rapists, all of them branded with marks relating to their 'husband.' As for the female officer, she had clearly been imposing herself as a dominatrix upon her own harem of male crewmembers. We gave her the same treatment as the other officers, leaving the men unconscious as well. And now we were through the gates, approaching the… luxurious beach house of 'King' Ronald Taylor. We wouldn't shoot him on sight, however. Jacob wanted answers. Stepping inside revealed it was quite sizeable, several rooms, even a kitchen with a campfire and chimney. There was a woman working the fire, cooking food that clearly came out of a ration packet, naked like the others before, and her brand showed that of a crown. Seeing us all enter, she jumped back, gasping, prepared to scream before locking eyes on Jacob, and starting to ease.

"You are… You are like my King. Did you come from the sky?" she asked quietly.

"Something like that," Jacob answered.

"Go, see him. He is on… on… balcony. With other wives. She pointed at a flap door with sunlight coming through. Jacob led the way out. Sprawled out, his back to us on a kind of lawn chair was a man, his receding hairline clear from even behind. The legs of a woman slightly visible between his own, leading under the skirt he wore. Three others fanned him with large palm fronds, the balcony looking out over an island bay and the setting sun.

"Acting Captain Ronald Taylor," Jacob called out, masking the distaste. Ronald shoved the woman between his legs off away as he stood, hands over his crotch and skirt, looking mildly embarrassed as the women stared at us. The one he shoved off? Well, let's just leave it at that her face was dirtier than the other women we've seen today. Ronald's skin was dark, darker than Jacobs even, likely because of the constant sun. He didn't have any body paint on him. But he had some fat on his bones, despite the condition of everyone else. Old and fat.

"O-Oh! You're here! Finally, here! I knew a real squad would blow through just fine once I managed to get the beacon online. Sorry if- if the mechs scuffed your pads! Or if the 'hunters' gave you problems. Jacob just began walking closer. Ronald began to look worried, but also curious at Jacob. "I'll uh… I'll get you all something nice once we get back to the Alliance. I've got to have a helluva lot of backpay."

"Is that a bribe, Acting Captain? What about your crew?" Jacob questioned.

"Total loss. Toxic food made em crazy. Propped me up in some kinda weird ritual. Not letting me leave, the other Officers talked like they liked being here. Waiting for a chance to get the beacon going again has been hell."

"Oh yeah, you've clearly been having such a rough time with your women," Garrus added, nothing but sarcasm. "That clue is written all over her face over there."

"That's really the best you can fucking do?" Jacob murmured, shaking his head.

"Hey, N7, you let all your people talk back like that?" he asked nervously. "Uh… who are you anyway?"

"Who I am? Honestly that doesn't really matter right now. You should really be asking who he is," I pointed a thumb at Jacob, as he glared at his father. "Captain Taylor, this is Operative Taylor. You don't know each other by any chance, do you?" I mocked. His eyes went wide, staring at his son in… I would call it horror.

"J-Jacob? No, anyone but you…"

"Why not?" Jacob began to explode. "Would ten years of your fucking fantasy look better to anyone else in the galaxy?" he stepped closer, jamming a finger at his father.

"You have to understand. This isn't me! The realities of command change you, and I wasn't ready!"

"Bullshit. You'd have stepped down. You're just a pathetic, power hungry and horny piece of shit, you fucking degenerate," I butted in.

"Why the fuck would you do this? To your own people?" Jacob shouted.

"There was resistance! Mutiny! We had to take a hard line to keep order. After things settled, the decay set in, we made the crew comfortable!"

"Comfortable between your legs, you pig," Kasumi added.

"The crew seemed happier. Ignorance is bliss, you know? They were grateful for guidance," Ronald kept digging his own hole.

"So you took advantage of the women. Maybe the officers really did want to keep you from activating the beacon. Maybe that's another lie. I don't fucking know. But you're not exactly worthy of trust right now," I countered.

"Look, after a few months they lost their inhibitions. Rank and protocol meant nothing. We established dominance, made the perks seem normal after a while."

"Yet you would have been ready to signal by then, det'kazaut," Tali took her turn.

"And creating your own fucked up harem to play king in a fucking juvenile fantasy."

"The fantasy of a horny prepubescent who watched too many of my countries… adult shows," Kasumi made her point.

"We'll get the crew help. But you're going to fucking rot. Whether that's behind bars or six feet under is up to Jacob," I ended this. Jacob brought up his pistol and aimed it at his father. He raised his hands in shock, the women of his harem screaming in fear. In the back of my mind, I know would judge him for it less than I judged Miranda. Maybe the conditions would be different enough to make it matter. But probably not, more than likely it's hypocritical.

"He's not worth the fuel to haul him out. Or the air he's breathing." Jacob shook his head. "And damn lucky I don't think he's worth pulling the fucking trigger. I don't know who you are. But you're not the father I remember. Shepard get the Alliance to bring in ships. Get these people safe, helped. Put him behind fucking bars." He paused and took a deep breath. "Please."

"Jacob… I-I did the best I could." Jacob scoffed.

"I'm ten years past believing that."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: Having kids be around and having all they know be the fucked up fantasy of Ronald was Pal's idea. And I went to ask her for advice as to what lengths I should go regarding the general crew. And, well... this freaky ass shit, if you're the kind of degenerate to make a harem, let alone to make a harem of essentially roofied people, if you're dressing them you're doing it minimally.**


	53. Sins of the Father

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, wanted to get this up last night, but, yesterday and today Lowes had me working a 6AM to 3PM, and I had to get up at 4 so I could eat and do a 40 minute drive. Took a damn part time job but the last few weeks have been full time hours. Yay. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

It was a curious and uneasy setup that we needed to make do with while we waited for the Alliance to send a pair of aid ships to Aeia. We couldn't just leave Ronald Taylor on the planet, not to keep perpetuating his harem and enjoying himself. But we couldn't just take him away in fear of what would happen. So, we had a different idea. We stayed put for a time, forcing Ronald to call off the hunters, say that the 'princes' had been lying to them and that we were there to help. It was a risk, but he cared more about his own skin than anything and knew if he said otherwise, he'd die on the spot. Unacceptable to a 'man' like him. We called in a shuttle after nightfall, which wasn't far off, luckily for us, having Thane and Grunt relieve us to keep Ronald under watch and the locals from trying anything. With express orders to Grunt to not kill anyone, no matter what, unless they're Ronald. Meanwhile, Thane would keep watch from the shadows, make sure that he doesn't go enjoying himself with anyone. And obviously for either of them to not eat anything that isn't out of their own ration packets.

I had already sent a message to Hackett by the time the shuttle arrived, explaining what had happened here as well with a report from the planet. Colonization is possible, Even without countermeasures to the plant life here. It would just require imports and sealed hydroponics farms. And the people were going to need help. Psychologically, physiologically, and when/if the neural decay can be at least treated, reintroducing them to their families. And I don't even want to get started on the children. Everything was on its way, and due to arrive in two days. A while for the Normandy to just sit here in orbit, guarding and rotating who's on guard duty down there, but we can't afford the worst possibilities.

Since returning to the ship, Jacob had gone straight to the comms room. Warning me that he might signal for me to join him shortly. So, while I waited, I quickly got out of my armor and stowed my equipment. Lo and behold, I got the signal rather quickly, and joined him. The comm room's table had been lowered, the lights dimmed, and the walls to displays, all of a dark room with Jacob in the circle at the center, mid-conversation. Considering the large sun on display in front of Jacob, it was obvious who he was talking to. Though I'm not sure why.

"What do you mean it wasn't you?" Jacob questioned; hands crossed over his chest. As I stepped into the circle alongside Jacob, the Illusive Man's eyes met mine for a moment, then back to Jacob.

"Simple. If I was the one who leaked the information about the Gernsback, I would be smiling at your resolution of the situation." He took a drag of his cigarette. "I am not smiling. I was not aware of it, and am not impacted by it. I had no more indication than Jacob that he was alive, and no reason to investigate. Regardless, with it behind you, the mission should be positively impacted." I heard the door behind us open.

"So, who did forward it?" Jacob pressed.

"I did," Miranda answered, stepping in and to the circle. TIM eyed Lawson curiously. I kept quiet, letting this play out for now. "The information wasn't classified, simply obscure. I put the pieces together and sent it along." She turned her focus to Jacob, Her expression almost… sad. No… something else. A mournful nostalgia? "I remember a time where it mattered to you. Sending it felt like I was keeping an old promise. And I keep my promises." Jacob's stance relaxed.

"Miranda, we'll discuss your… liberal interpretation of my security protocols privately." TIM turned to face Jacob and I. "Unless there's anything else?" No one responded. "Good," then pressed a button on his armrest and the call ended, the comm room returning to normal. Jacob and Miranda shared another wordless glance, before Miranda put a hesitant hand on Jacob's shoulder, then walking out.

"Why was TIM your first guess over Lawson?" I asked.

"It came through Cerberus channels, not the ship's," he shrugged. "But she's got a good memory. A bit selective, but good. It's… been a long time since I thought about those days," he sighed. "Not sure which promise she meant. Not sure I want to know. She… requires a better man than I." I raised a brow and he simply shook his head. I'll leave it at that.

"You good with the mission, then?" Jacob shrugged again, shaking his head.

"Captain Taylor can rot. Doesn't change me or what I know. I mourned my father a decade ago. I won't be mourning him again."

"Fair enough. Why'd you ask me to wait?"

"Just in case TIM was being difficult, maybe you could pressure him. Guess it wasn't needed. Either way," he held out his hand. "Thanks." I accepted the hand, shaking it.

"Anytime."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We were coming into dock on the Citadel. After the Alliance had arrived on Aeia to pick up the pieces, Thane had come to me, shortly after the end of his last shift on the planet with news. 'He has taken a contract,' he told me. He was talking about Kolyat, of course. He had been hired for a hit of a Citadel politician. Someone running as a Superintendent for one of the Wards. Considering that Kolyat Is greener in the business than Thane's skin, it's likely he got the contract because he dropped the last name. The most we had to go on was a C-sec report EDI pulled informing Captain Bailey about a Drell entering the station. They are rare enough, only three hundred thousand of them and most stay on Kahje or other Hanar colonies. Sure, some Drell civilians are spread around all over, and their movements are legally limited anywhere, but with the Hanar's prevalent use of Drell assassins? C-sec likes to know when one shows up. I had asked Garrus to send a message to Bailey, and warning him that we were coming to the citadel and needed to ask him a few questions for a lead. After that, arranging the meeting was simple enough. Dock, take a shuttle to the Zakera C-sec main Precinct, head to Bailey's office.

Thane didn't argue when I suggested Garrus join us, seeing the benefits of a seasoned detective helping to track his son. And so, the three of us made our way to Bailey, the most interaction with others coming from Garrus greeting any C-sec officers who recognized him on the way. Bailey's office was one of many in a hallway housing an office for each C-Sec Captain for the ward. We buzzed Bailey's door and he let us in quickly. The office was modest, small, but private. A window looking out across the ward behind him with a desk and terminal facing the door, two seats on our side. He had a poster for a sports team back on Earth, a small collection of child's drawings, and a picture of a younger Bailey, smiling with two children in front of him, also smiling. A boy and a girl. But the picture had a 'phantom arm' reaching over like a person had been cut out.

"Commander, Garrus. Good to see you both again. I don't believe I've met your… acquaintance," Bailey greeted in his regular gruff voice.

"Thane," the Drell introduced.

"Captain Armando Bailey. What can I do to help you, gentlemen?"

"We're here to find Thane's son. We have reason to believe a Zakera criminal hired him," Garrus explained.

"Right, one of my officers reported a Drell showing up through customs. Kolyat Krios?" He read off.

"Yes." Bailey eyed Thane curiously for a moment, but said nothing, not yet. There might be a system flag on the name. "Another officer reported a Drell of the same description talking to Mouse. Hm," he began to rub his chin.

"Mouse?" Thane questioned. While his voice was typically monotone, not conveying his emotions, a very slight spike in it hinted at recognition.

"Ah, probably not the guy who hired your boy," Bailey waved off. "Petty criminal. No use for hire nor the creds, let alone for a Drell. No offense, but a criminal hiring a Drell is probably hiring for one thing."

"None taken," Thane answered.

"Well, the Commander is a Spectre, so I'll leave this for you to handle until things escalate. Anyways, I'm more than certain that Mouse is just a messenger here. He used to be a duct rat and runs errands for anyone who pays."

"He was a what?" I asked.

"Duct rat," Bailey repeated. "It's local slang for poor kids in the ward. That's just what Zakera chose. Plenty of them play around in the ventilation ducts, and no one can get to them. Nasty shit," Bailey murmured. Every few months a little body gets pulled. Lacerations from fans, went down a deadfall, got exposed to vacuum. And those are just the ones we find. But Mouse is grown now, can't fit anymore. Call it smarts, or luck. Who knows?"

"What's Mouse typically charged with?" Garrus changed topic.

"Petty crimes, like I said. Odd jobs for the real criminals. Sometimes he's a fence or runs data." Bailey then started to grin. "One time he was run in for selling illegal VI personalities. Want a guess who it was?"

"Ah shit…" I murmured.

"Yeah, I'm recording this," Garrus chuckled. "Go on, Bailey."

"Gladly. A Commander Shepard VI. If you erased a file, it would say 'I delete data like you on the way to real errors,'" Bailey mocked. Thane remained emotionless, but Garrus snickered. "Buggy piece of shit, though. Crashed all the damn time. The error message would always talk about the galaxy being at stake, so you should fix the problem yourself."

"For the love of the spirits tell me you have a copy. I know exactly who to pass one off to."

"Shiiiiiit," I tried and failed to stifle my own chuckle. It was obvious who he was thinking of. And more obvious the kind of hell I'd be getting when she got a copy.

"Now that I've met you, I wish I did. But Mouse only had the one copy and that's in evidence lockup. But he might have more. Afterall with your survival having been circulating for a while…" Bailey trailed off. "You can usually find him around the Dark Star Lounge. Hogs a public comm terminal whenever he's working." Bailey looked back at Thane. "Looks like your kid's running with the wrong crowd."

"He is." Bailey's face got serious.

"If Mouse can't get you in touch with your son, he'll know who can. I'll help if you need it, just send word."

"Your generosity is appreciated, Captain," Thane stated.

"Father to father? Every damned day I work here, and I've worked Zakera for two years, I see kids turn to crime because they don't have any other options. And their parents sure don't give a shit." He stared Thane in the eyes. "You're trying to save yours." Thane was silent a moment.

"He faces a dark path. He shall not walk it."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

After finishing with Bailey, we had wasted no time in taking a cab to the Dark star lounge. The cabbie was one of the more talkative ones, an Asari. She asked some questions about what we were up to, where we were from, small talk. Thane remained quiet and we gave enough information to apparently satisfy her without getting into much of a conversation. She had mentioned how she was doing work as a cabbie to kill time and talk to people before the Andromeda Initiative and the Asari Ark, Leusinia, sent out the boarding call. She thought it would be nice and meaningful to bring more memories of people with her, even if they wouldn't be going themselves. I can see and appreciate the sentiment.

Finally, we arrived at the lounge and the Asari waved us farewell. Instead of entering the lounge, we followed the signs to the nearest public terminals. Phone booths, essentially. All of them were in use, but Thane immediately started making a beeline for one particular booth. Sat within was a scrawny young man. A bit on the dirty side, and his clothes looking a little ragged. His hair was messy and his facial hair unshaven. Naturally, we followed.

"Yeah, sure. I can get you two cases by the end of the day," the man spoke through the terminal. Thane approached, silently standing beside the terminal. The man, Mouse, looked up. "Hey man, it's-" his eyes went as wide as the station and he recoiled in his seat. "Oh shit! Krios?! I thought you retired!" he exclaimed, quickly lowering his voice. Now Garrus and I were catching up. "Oh... Oh no… C-Commander Shepard? What do you want with me?"

"Be still, Mouse," Thane reassured, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You can change your pants shortly."

"Well, you two know each other," Garrus remarked.

"When we heard the name, I did not expect it to be the same Mouse. He was one of my contacts on the Citadel while I was active. The Duct rats are quite the observation network. I would make use of their skills to learn more about my targets."

"Well, that's hardly anything new for the world. Worlds," I sighed. "But it's what happens when you have poor children. Regardless, we have questions. And you, answers." Mouse got nervous. He began stuttering.

"L-look. The people I w-work for? I can't just… answer questions for anyone!"

"We are not just anyone, Mouse," Thane retorted. "You gave another Drell instructions for an Assassination. Who's the target?"

"I… I don't know, Krios. I didn't ask. The people I work for? I don't want to just… disappear, Krios. I'd like to, I want to help you. You always did right by us," Mouse allowed a soft smile. "But I won't die for you."

"Look, Mouse," I began. "The other Drell?" I glanced at Thane, waiting for his approval.

"He is my son, Mouse. I cannot let him make this mistake." Mouse's features fell.

"Oh. Oh… shit," he murmured, wringing his hands.

"You will never be named, Mouse. I swear it," Thane reassured. Mouse sighed, pausing for a moment.

"Ok. He came with that holo you took of me. Said he wanted a job. So I ran through your old contacts, see who might want to give him a shot. The guy who offered was-" Mouse gulped, glancing around nervously. "Elias Kelham," he whispered.

"I know the name," Garrus spoke up. Human, you might have guessed. Moved to the Citadel around ten years ago. He broke through to big-time after the Geth attack. A lot of kingpins lived up on the Presidium and died leaving a power vacuum. Not sure what he's been up to after I left for Omega."

"Running rackets on Shin Akiba. Bad news," Mouse murmured. "Look, are we done?" he asked, closing and standing from the terminal.

"You've been a great help, Mouse. Thank you."

"Yeah, yeah. Well, I'm out of here," he was getting anxious.

"Mouse," Thane stopped him again, hand on the shoulder. "Kelham will never know." Mouse took a deep breath.

"It was good to see you, Krios. Next time you're on the station? Please don't bring the family." He nearly broke into a jog before Garrus stopped him.

"Just a moment, Mouse. One of your Shepard VI's? I want a copy." Mouse looked confused for a moment, more so as I groaned but didn't stop him.

"Er, sure! Sure. Here," he produced a small data drive from his pocket. "It's all in here. Ok, bye," he nearly started to run. Thane watched him leave longer than I expected.

"You alright?" Thane glanced down.

"Mouse… knew more about my life than Kolyat ever did." Thane stood rigid. "He smiles up at me, broken teeth and scabby knees," he fell into a flashback. "Bare feet black. A dead-end future looking up at me. Worshipping the petty gifts I offer." He came out of it. "I was the only good thing he had in his youth. Yet I left him, as I left Kolyat." Yes. Yes, he did. With the information gathered, we gave Bailey a call, having left some of the crowds behind. He picked up quickly.

"Elias Kelham," I began.

"Aw shit," Bailey grumbled. "Alright, this is… awkward. He… augh," Bailey began talking quieter. "He and I have an agreement. He doesn't cause too much trouble, and… buys fucking tickets to the C-Sec charity ball," he made up on the spot," and in return, I pretend he doesn't exist."

"Bailey-" Garrus began.

"I know, I know, Garrus. I know how much I hated it before, and I still do. But it keeps the peace, and he handles things quiet, not loud.

"And if he's bluffing?"

"He's not. When he first made the offer, shortly after I got promoted to Captain. I refused, and so he 'demonstrated.' There was a violent crime spree on the ward for about a month until I cracked. Now," he continued before we could speak up. "I said I'd help you, and I will. I just need to do this carefully or they'll be repercussions."

"Send it up the chain as a Spectre's orders."

"I was hoping you'd say that. I'll have some of my people bring him in and set him up in a private room for you to interrogate. We'll do this at one of the smaller precincts, might as well be the one you're already near, one level down from the Dark Star. I'll stay here for a while. With a bit of luck, I can convince him I had nothing to do with it. Just head on down, they'll be waiting for you. His lawyer will probably show quickly, I'll have my man stall him and do so myself when I get there."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We waited at the Precinct, the three of us, and made our plan for how to approach this. Garrus knows how to be the Bad Cop, and I'm the boy scout who can play good cop. Thane will observe and speak as needed. When Kelham did arrive, another Officer lead us towards the interrogation room he was in, and left the door unlocked for us. The three of us entered a rather pissed off looking man with a chinstrap and sideburns connecting through a mustache, hair gelled back, and a green suit. He was restrained in a chair, arms and legs locked in place, but the chair otherwise like that of a dentist chair.

"Who the hell are you clowns?" Kelham sneered. His voice was pompous and low. Thane remained at the door while Garrus and I began to take positions in the room. Myself in front of Kelham, Garrus behind.

"Elias Kelham," Garrus began. "You want someone dead. Badly enough to hire someone to get their hands dirty for you. You're going to tell us who," he leaned in close.

"Only person I'm talking to is my goddamn lawyer," he smirked.

"That would work for C-sec," I remarked. "We're not C-sec." He raised a brow.

"Oh, trying to be the fucking shadow types, huh? Right, sure."

"Let me explain the rules for you, Kelham," Garrus began again. "We are going to ask a question. When we do, you'll answer. And you only speak when we tell you to speak."

"Who the fuck do you think you are, you bird-brained piece of shit?" Kelham glared. "Bailey's gonna have to do some big damned favors to make up for this."

"Bailey doesn't know you're here. This is off the record. Nothing said is being recorded, nothing here can be used against you in court." Kelham looked over at Thane.

"What about you, Frog boy? Got anything to say? Bore me into confessing?" Kelham scoffed. "Hit me, I dare you." No one did. "So no one has the balls."

"Elias, we want the Assassin. Not you. Why would you stick your neck out for a contract killer?" I questioned.

"And I would then be confessing to putting a contract on someone. I'm not fucking stupid," he chuckled.

"All you need to tell me is the name. Then I walk on out of here. You never have to see me again."

"And I should believe you because…?"

"You also have no reason to disbelieve," Thane added.

"Except the fact some guys not in uniform waltz into my interrogation room. Are we done here? I got people to see. Goddamn waste of time." Just before I could open my mouth to speak, the door opened, revealing a man in a black suit, human, angrily waving off Bailey.

"-Et out of my way, Bailey! You have no right to-" he looked inside, seeing Kelham restrained to the chair. "The hell? Step away from my client! Do- do you have him restrained in that chair?!" he shouted.

"About time, Freddy," Kelham smirked, cocky as hell.

"Traffic was bad," 'Freddy' glanced back at the door and at Bailey. He pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and a lighter, taking a drag once it was lit. Make your move, little man. "You'll need a shovel the size of the fucking citadel to dig yourselves out of this." Now it was my turn to smirk.

"Listen, Freddy, was it?" I began, pulling up my Omni-tool. "Does… this symbol mean anything to you?" I asked as I displayed the Spectre Logo alongside my credentials. The color immediately drained from his face. "The name's John Shepard, Council Spectre. Pleasure to meet you both."

"A Spec-"

"So, you can turn yourself around and get the hell out of my interrogation."

"This is-" he began to shout.

"Completely and perfectly legal? Why yes, yes it is. Thanks for pointing that out. Close the door behind you," I continued to smirk. Freddy, looking nervous with his now pale complexion, looked at Elias.

"I'll contest this, Elias. I'll bring it to the Council even!"

"Ah, yes, the Council! Who's lives I saved. I'm sure they'd love to hear you contest my interrogation of a big-time crime boss. Face it," I leaned forward. "You can't do _shit._ " Defeated, Freddy slowly turned, leaving the room.

"Freddy? Freddy!" Kelham called out as he did so. Then looked to me with a new sense of fear.

"The name, please."

"Joram Talid. Turian."

"His location?"

"His apartment is in the 800 blocks."

"Excellent. And your reward for being such a kind and cooperative man? You'll be locked up to enjoy more quality time in such comfortable chairs."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

After passing along what Kelham had told us, Bailey gave us a bit of information on Talid while getting a squad car for us. He promises to end organized crime on the Wards, but his message is all race-politics. Anti-human, specifically. A helpful coincidence was that Talid had advertised that for the afternoon, which it had been for a while now, he would be walking around the Ward, campaigning to people face to face. Near his apartment, though that part wasn't in the advertisement. If worst comes to worst, Bailey and a few officers are nearby on Standby. The plan was for Thane to follow along the ground, blending in with the crowds and the shadows. While I would be walking above along the maintenance catwalks, typically used by Keepers but accessible to anyone else still. I would observe him to keep an eye on him in case Thane loses line of sight or even if I see Kolyat early.

EDI had already gotten into local surveillance and was keeping a bead on Talid as we were en route. He was still in a very open and public area. Garrus dropped us off around the corner and left to join the other Officers, and we got eyes on Talid. Currently, he was talking with a pair of civilians. A Turian male and female. And an armored Krogan standing rather close behind Talid.

"A bodyguard," Thane spoke. "He holds himself too close, he lacks the balance between distance and responsiveness. It will make him easy to follow. Go." I nodded as Thane clasped his hands and lowered his head in prayer. I took to my position, glancing back shortly after to see that he had vanished. By the time I got to my vantage point, Talid had just wrapped up with the pair of voters we had seen him with.

"Thane, I got him. You in position?"

"I am." Talid started to walk, the Krogan following close enough behind he could probably touch him just by outstretching his finger. With his arms still to his side. He continued walking down the wide-open hallway, occasionally trading words with a potential voter or two, but not really stopping for any yet, then taking a right down along a shopping street. I had to pass through a set of doors, but I haven't lost him yet. And now I had a keeper up here to keep me company. By completely ignoring me. Talid seemed to trade a word with his bodyguard before the two parted, Talid introducing himself to another group of Civilians, this time a group of seven Asari with a pair of Salarians and three Turian women. Maybe the Salarians were female and were all friends out on the town. While I kept an eye on Talid, the Krogan had entered a store, Aquila. The window to the inside showing a Human behind the counter. I couldn't get a great view of the products. I saw some minor convenience items and maybe some tech? The Krogan took one of the data pads on sale, traded a word with the shop owner, and tossed it aside. Before grabbing another and throwing it against the wall behind the human, who looked terrified, and pulled up his Omni-tool, keying quickly as the Krogan watched. Probably a credit transfer. Taking down organized crime by running his own hustles? Right.

The Krogan left and Talid excused himself from the group he had been speaking to. Who honestly looked relieved to be left alone and immediately started walking along. The Krogan and Turian returned to formation and continued walking along. Taking a detour through a small bar and lounge, heavy bass playing. I thought they'd be passing through, but the Krogan simply walked up to the bartender before another credit transfer appeared to be made while Talid was still walking. And this victim of the shakedown was Turian. Another pair of doors, and they began to make a turn towards the apartments, but the maintenance walkways didn't directly follow.

"Thane, going to lose sight for a moment. Stay on them," I warned. I passed through another door into what was obviously a stock room. It was on the smaller side, so smaller kind of store. But I wasn't alone, this kid, Human, he was probably in his late teens, working his first job was in the middle of counting an item on hand before he did a double-take, seeing me and looking a bit afraid.

"Uh… Er, sir? S-sir you can't be back here," he began. I simply flashed my Spectre Credentials again.

"Relax, kid. Just passing through. Spectre business," I stated as I walked right by him and out another door to the catwalks. There you are, Talid. Haven't lost you yet. Just need to catch up. Another wall blocked my vision before I heard a man cry out in fear. As I got line of sight again, I saw a Human who had been shoved to the ground, and a blue-skinned Drell taking aim as Talid and the bodyguard began to react.

"Kolyat!" I called out. The Drell reacted, confusion as he looked back, then snapped back to face Talid and the Krogan, who was starting to draw his own weapon. Kolyat fired, hitting the Krogan once in the gut and once in the shoulder. He'll live, but I guess he couldn't afford shields. Talid ran inside, Kolyat running to follow. I jumped down from the maintenance catwalk, Thane running up beside me as we followed them into the apartment complex. Unfortunately, Thane and I were forced to run up the stairwell, but Talid's apartment was only on the third floor. We barged through the door, finding it unlocked as the smart TV in the living room was on the home screen, shining white light and nothing else. Behind Kolyat, while in front of him was Joram Talid on his knees, hands behind his head, facing the door. A gun pressed to the back of his skull. I already had my gun out, approaching, taking aim. He was nervous, and extremely inexperienced, letting us get this close. His eyes locked onto Thane. Looking him over with surprise, and then anger and disgust.

"Now? Now you finally show up?! Is this a joke?" I couldn't tell his age by visuals, I haven't seen very many Drell, but his voice sounded young. A kind of Raspy, like thane, but noticeably higher. Masculine, but higher.

"Help me out here, I'll do whatever you want!" Talid pleaded.

"Shut up!" Kolyat threatened. The door behind us opened again. Bailey walking in with Garrus, guns aimed and ready.

"C-sec," Bailey called out. "Put the gun down, son," Bailey ended gently.

"Get out of my way," Kolyat growled. "I'm walking out. He's coming with me." Thane took a few steps closer.

"They will have snipers outside," Thane warned. He scoffed. Let's spook the kid. There's a lamp rather close to him.

"I don't need your-" Kolyat began, cut off by my gunshot as the lamp shattered, Talid crying out, afraid, while Kolyat recoiled, completely distracted. In the moment, I closed the gap, twisting his arm and squeezing to make him drop the gun, nudging Talid to run, which he did towards C-sec. I kicked the gun away, and released Kolyat. "You son of a bitch!" Kolyat shouted, furious and on the verge of tears. Bailey got on his comm piece.

"Talid's clear and the suspect is disarmed. Come on in."

"Kolyat… I am short on time. I-"

"Nothing's changed there," he snarled.

"Not… not the kind of time that I mean."

"He's trying to make up for his mistakes, kid," I added gently. "

"What?" Kolyat scowled, throwing his hands into the air. "You came here to beg for forgiveness? To die in fucking peace or something?!"

"No," Thane answered. "I came to grant you peace." Thane and Kolyat were both silent a moment. "You're angry that I was not there when your mother died." Kolyat rolled his eyes.

"You weren't there when she was alive. What difference does it make?"

"Your mother… Irikah… I did not tell you this in hopes of protecting you, regardless of any and all anger you would harbor towards me. The men who killed her… Killed her to get to me. The fault was and always will be mine."

"...What?" Kolyat questioned, losing the anger in place of surprise.

"After her body was given to the deep, I left to hunt them. The triggermen. And the ringleaders who ordered it. I returned to the battle sleep that your mother pulled me from so many years ago. I hurt them all. Eventually killed them all. When I had finished, you were… older. I should have stayed with you.

"I guess it's too bad for me you waited so long, huh?" Thane looked down again.

"Kolyat… I have taken countless bad things out of the world. Perhaps even taken out some good, I don't know. But you are the only good thing I ever added to the world."

"Thane?" Bailey spoke up as tears of anger, frustration, sadness, perhaps, a million and one emotions started to stream from Kolyat's eyes. "This is a conversation you should be having alone, not in front of strangers." The officers he had called for started to enter. "Get the boy and his father back to the precinct. Give them a room and as much time as they need. Now Thane clasped his son on the shoulder, and Kolyat allowed it.

"That's generous of you, Bailey," I spoke quietly. A pained, empty expression crossed his face as he stared into the white light of the tv.

"He's not the only man who ever screwed up raising a son."


	54. Beacon

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey, this is actually some good news I have to tell for the first time in a while. I mentioned my job at the Lumber Yard at Lowe's was working me to the bone, right? Think I mentioned I applied for a part time position but they threw full time hours at me? And that it's a 40 minute commute? Well, a movie theater barely ten minutes from home is almost done with it's construction and they accepted my job application. Box Office Cashier. They plan to open sometime in February and Lowe's got a two weeks notice from me. But Saturday, I got a concussion on the job because some total fucking idiot, probably in a corporate office, decided that the best way to stock 8ft long metal sheathing was vertically. With the base around shoulder height. Long story short, trying to stock it, some fell and bonked me on the head. I'm fine, I've been concussed before. They let my two weeks notice take immediate effect and I'm not working there anymore. With the fact I now have a lot more free time, I'm going to try uploading weekly again rather than every other week (until the new job starts up. If we're lucky I might be able to keep it going.)**

 **Also, for about a week now, I've had a fully functioning self-built PC! Thanks to the Christmas funds mostly. By the time I'm writing ME3 I hope to have gotten to ME3 on a computer playthrough where I can try some specific mods, I believe one is called EGM or something of the sort to see if narratively aspects of it fit better, and I might take inspiration from there. We'll see. Anyways, sorry for this huge ass author's note. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

Thane and Kolyat had been alone for a while, which is probably a good sign. To pass the time, Bailey looked into some old C-Sec records. Noticed a string of murders around a decade ago where all the victims were all thugs and murderers and rapists linked to a slaver group, C-Sec just didn't have the hard evidence at the time.

"Prime suspect was a Drell," Bailey remarked, leaning back in his chair. He shared a glance with Garrus and I. "Not sure who was responsible for those, but they probably don't exist anymore. Ten years and all," Bailey remarked nonchalantly. The door to his office opened, Thane stepping inside. His face as blank as ever.

"Things ok?" I asked.

"In… a sense," Thane answered. "Our problems cannot be fixed by words. Let alone what seem like so few. He has agreed to keep in contact as we continue our mission. And after so long as we survive. We shall see what happens."

"Now for the elephant in the room," Bailey sighed. "Your boy shot someone, and tried to kill someone else. No one I feel sympathy for, but it's there."

"I _did_ witness both victims shaking down business and threatening civilians. No, he shouldn't just walk off scot free, but…" I thought for a moment. "Try wording it all as misguided vigilantism. Sticking it to the man and all that. He wants to make a difference, so give him… community service."

"What jury would agree to that?" Bailey questioned.

"With me putting Kelham behind bars for you, you're able to clean out your C-Sec closet. You can slide this… ruling under the rug."

"Hm. Maybe add in a plea deal, that would help keep it out of court. Yeah, I'll see what I can do, Shepard."

"You know, this might be one of the most actually unlawful things you've ever done," Garrus remarked.

"You say that like you weren't there for me stealing the first Normandy to go to Illos."

"I don't remember the Council telling you not to go on your own, just that they wouldn't send reinforcements," he shrugged.

"Regardless, thank you, Captain," Thane bowed, changing the course of discussion. "And thank you, Shepard. I am ready to continue our mission."

"You sure? We can take some more ti-" I began, interrupted by a call coming through the comms.

"Shepard, call from the Illusive Man. And this is one you're _really_ going to want to hear," Miranda informed. I sighed, what timing.

"Is it the IFF?"

"No. It's a Beacon."

 **Commander John Shepard**

Two and a half days of travel and Thane had declined the offer for him to stay on the Citadel for us to pick up after he's had some more time, preferring instead to be on the mission. TIM had explained the situation. Joab, a colony in the Enoch system of the Rosetta Nebula had an archaeological team in what was believed to be a site for one of the ancient habitation centers of some primate-like species. Only subterranean remnants of the cities have been found, and largely tanks to time capsules that the species tended to bury outside of such centers. Whoever they were, they predated the Protheans. And it's more than obvious who their killers must be. Returning to the topic of the archaeologists, they were digging in a likely location for one of the habitation centers, and found out that the Protheans must have had a similar interest in this species. They uncovered a buried beacon. Unfortunately, the planet was in Terminus, and the Blue Suns have a significant presence on the planet. They caught wind of the beacon seemingly before word could be sent out to the Alliance, as the Colony is primarily Human. However, Cerberus had an agent on the team, and he was able to send a message.

The Suns have fortified the dig site and are likely arranging either for a buyer or perhaps even a Council Ransom. The latter of which is sure to result in a Spectre more than it is a ransom. Another curious tidbit in TIM's call was that he may have a follow-up mission depending on what we find here. Something about another dig team that Cerberus has somewhere. Naturally, I didn't leave the Citadel before making sure Anderson would hear about this little find so that someone not Cerberus can pick up the Beacon after we clean up the Suns.

Our orbital scans of the complex show that the Suns have dug in deep, fortifying the position heavily. They had already moved in anti-air guns, which meant we were going to have to land the shuttle out of range or fly low and get as close as we can to the fortifications. At least as far as the shuttle and ship is concerned. But as we travelled, a different idea occurred to me.

The Mako. Technically it wasn't combat ready. The gun was still busted, and the shields could only perform at their minimal strength. But it was perfectly drivable, and the hull was intact to withstand a drop just fine. We might just go for a lower drop on account of the shields. The AA guns they have won't break a Frigate's shields at the speed it'll be going in and out, and by the time they realize the Mako dropped and adjust their aim, we'll be on the ground. That gets us on the ground at a reasonable distance. That solves the problem of us getting to the ground, but only that. Too close to the dig site and the gun emplacements will tear the Mako, and us, to shreds. Too far, and any attempt to cross the gap will be a suicide run with or without our biotics. It doesn't help that the surrounding terrain is flat, any potential natural cover flattened by the Suns to better fortify the position. Sure, the Normandy could airstrike to clear the way, but then we risk destroying the Beacon. The good news is that the Mako can fit the entire team, and that Garrus, Thane, Zaeed, and myself know how to efficiently use a sniper. Additionally, I've gotten a new toy. A heavy weapon with a fun little warning symbol on its side. Despite not actually being radioactive.

The M-920 Cain. It's a prototype weapon for the Alliance, lovingly nicknamed as a Nuke launcher, as it coincidentally creates a mushroom cloud but without the fallout. A portable particle accelerator surrounded by chambers for dust form Eezo. Using antimatter reactions to generate strong positive and negative electrical currents into the Eezo, it launches a twenty-five gram slug that accelerates to five kilometers a second, the slug being enveloped in mass effect fields shearing away at the target with massive explosive force. Our simulations show that it can take out the Anti-Armor and Anti-Personnel turrets facing our Drop Zone without breaching the dig site itself.

So, drop zone along the… North side. Use the Cain on the Anti-Armor turret, and if that doesn't destroy the AP turret, use the second round on that. Snipe any major threats, then use our biotic powerhouses to cover our advance. Sounds like a solid plan to me.

An hour later, everyone was gathered in the Mako, briefed on the situation and the plan. Like old times, Garrus was in the Gunner position, and Tali at the Engineer's seat in the cockpit. While Garrus might not be shooting, it's still leaving room in the troop compartment. Which, having Grunt in there, every little bit helps. Soon, the cargo bay doors opened, showing that we were within the planet's atmosphere as all we could see were grey clouds. Joker began the countdown from ten as I revved the Mako's engine, she's still got fire left in her. When he reached two, the cloud cover vanished, and after one, I put the pedal to the metal, laughing screams with Tali, Garrus, Grunt, Jack, Kasumi, and Zaeed as we entered free-fall, the remainders just being silent. Less than ten seconds passed before we reached the threshold to activate our thrusters, and we could see the dig site from the angle of our descent. The entrance and fortifications formed a circular perimeter. Two Anti-Air guns, and an Anti-Armor gun for each cardinal direction. The entrance to the site itself was a pre-fab that was likely put in place when the dig began. And all of it surrounded by what were essentially raised trenches. I activated thrusters, and the Mako impacted the ground as it normally did, coming to a stop more or less where we wanted it to be, and immediately began filing out from the Mako's left hand side, while the right faced the dig site.

The sound of gunfire was endless, some of it meant to suppress, others to kill. So, I wasted no time in pulling the monster of a gun from my back, feeling the weight, easily in the triple digits, and peeked to get my angle on the Anti-Armor. Once I had the angle, I returned to cover, and used two seconds to begin the charge. The remaining two was peeking out of cover behind the Mako again and finishing the charge, with a satisfying whirring noise through the charge it roared like a fighter jet as the recoil from the slug leaving the weapon might have dislocated my shoulder if not for my enhancements and without any noticeable time difference, the Anti-Armor turret exploded in a fantastic mushroom cloud, who's explosion drowned out the rhythm of gunfire. In part perhaps many of the guns pointed at us stopped firing for any number of reasons. The Anti Armor was absolutely obliterated, meaning the longevity of our cover here just improved exponentially until they put their own heavy weapons in position.

As the Cain took a moment to cool, a jet like tool extending from a ring pattern along the weapon's barrel literally spraying coolant around and into the barrel, coolant which sizzled and began to boil I might add, Garrus and Thane pulled out their snipers to begin taking shots along the cockpit side of the Mako, while I was at the back end. Now with the gunfire, I could hear the bullets now impacting the hull rather than deflecting off shields. A light on my side of the Cain turned green, indicated it was ready to be loaded. I took the large slug from my belt and inserted it into the now open ammunition slot along the bottom of the barrel. Now I peeked to see the Anti-Personnel turrets. Two of them, the one on the left was closer to the Anti-Armor and had fortunately gotten caught in the blast, so they won't be using that one anytime soon. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for the one on the right. The gun was smaller than the Anti-Armor, which was more or less a block of metal dug into the ground with a pair of large Mass Accelerator cannons sticking out above the ground. The AP emplacements, however, were more comparable to the Pillboxes of the old wars on Earth Holes and viewports in the ground lined with thick layers of concrete. The difference here, however, like with the Anti-Armor turrets, was that they were protected with metal rated for military ship hulls. And an improvement of the AP emplacements today, was that no viewport was needed. Just a solid metal wall with guns and cameras built into the reinforcement while inside sat the gunners taking aim.

I began the charge in full cover, having gotten my angle, and then for the last two seconds, took aim. My shields flared a second in, but I had to commit, or risk us getting bogged down as reinforcements come to our side. Or even mortars if they have them. Just before the Cain fired, one particular sound stood out to me. Another sniper shot. The Cain fired and I was launched back onto the ground, right onto my back with all the wind knocked out of me, adrenaline not letting me feel the pain. But as I tried to breathe, it was all less than shallow and more akin to empty wheezing. My eyes were wide under my helmet as the later portion of the sound of an explosion was registered by my ears, and Tali shouting my name in fear. I was staring up at the grey, cloudy sky before a purple visor with two bright white lights behind it, the contours of her face barely visible, followed by that of a white and red Salarian helmet.

"Projectile missed heart. Impacted lung. Straight through body and armor. Exit wound visible. Likely came from Widow Anti-Material rifle. Applying medi-gel. Will survive wounds provided battle victory," Mordin explained. As the medi-gel was applied and as it set, I was able to take an actual breath, the air staying in my lungs this time.

Fuh-Fuck," I groaned, the pain now kicking in. If not for my armor and whatever was left of my shields, the impact would probably have been a lot worse. I could probably stick a finger or two through my torso and out my back by the sounds of it. I began to try and sit up but Mordin simply pushed me down to the ground.

"No condition to fight. Will remain here to protect and treat you," Mordin shook his head.

"Damn it," I murmured, my chest feeling like it was both on fire and being stabbed by a million needles every time I took a breath. "Garrus, squad's yours." I stated weakly, staring him down. With our helmets, expressions were impossible to see. But I could read him. Nerves were probably taking hold a bit, but the nod he returned told me the only thing that mattered. He'd get the job done.

"You heard him," Garrus called out. "I'm in Command while Mordin stays back to treat Shepard."

"I'm not going anywhere," Tali stated, staring right down at me.

"I'll-" I coughed. "Be fine. Go kill the bastard who shot me," I suggested. "Take point-" I breathed again, cringing in pain. "With Garrus."

"Bosh'tet," Tali murmured, running her hand along my helmet. "Fine. Just don't do anything stupid."

"Not with professor around," I remarked quietly, a smirk under my helmet. Tali joined the others who were preparing to push, giving one last glance back to me.

"Jack, Samara, give us a barrier with everything you've got. Rest of you biotics, reinforce it. We've got a mad dash to make to those trenches or we're carrion bait. On my mark," Garrus paused a moment, waiting for the next lull in gunfire to take advantage of any reloading or cool downs their weapons need. "Mark!"

 **Garrus Vakarian**

There is something so terribly surreal about running through an open field towards what is essentially a wall of bullets coming right at you, but just seeing them bounce off a near invisible field before they hit you. And not knowing how long they might keep doing that. But we were closing in. Just a few more seconds and we'll be in the trenches taking them by storm. My legs are burning but I'm not dying because of how much they complain. Finally, we made it to the wall of the trenches and jumped. When Shepard described them as raised in the briefing, it wasn't by much. Only a few feet. Enough to jump and quickly vault over for any soldier out of training. Obviously, the dangerous part was your vulnerability during the jump and vault. But fortunately, the Cain did wipe out defenders along this side of the dig site, but Grunt was also the first to make the jump, drawing fire to the giant Krogan, but our biotics, with the relative safety of the trench wall, used what was left of the barrier to cover the climb for we gunmen, allowing them to be covered by us for their climb. Shotguns were going to reign supreme here. As Grunt so quickly demonstrated on a pair of Blue Suns gunners, just one shot from his Claymore tearing through two with one shot.

"Tali, take Zaeed, Samara, Miranda, and Kasumi along the eastern side of the trench. Grunt, Jack, Jacob, Thane, and I will take the west. We'll meet at the south end and enter the dig site," I ordered.

"Got it," she responded. The benefit to fighting in these trenches was their design. You couldn't actually see over the trench wall unless you were standing on what was essentially a ridge-like platform on the inside of the trenches. It was to our benefit, however, because those who weren't already in the open right in front of us, Grunt specifically as we charged along, could only see and take a shot at us if they exposed their entire torsos by standing on the ridges. And first their backs would have to be facing us. A few learned how poor a decision that was rather quickly. A few smart ones tried tossing explosives at us, but our biotics tossed them back before they even hit the ground. Until finally a fleeing Sun, terrified, ran face first into us, tried to run back, before just stopping, sandwiched between us. They were unarmed, Salarian, holding his hands in the air.

"Uh… I surrender?"

"Works for me," I shrugged, moving past Grunt and bashing the butt of my shotgun against his head, knocking him out. "Someone tie him up. We still need to clear the dig site and secure the Beacon. If we're lucky, we'll only find a handful of mercs inside." Jacob went and took care of securing the merc, while Tali unlocked the pre-fab over the dig site and we entered. It was empty, save for a table and lockers along the wall. The way down to the dig site itself was a large round elevator in the center of the prefab, though it seems we would need to call the elevator up to us.

"I got this," Kasumi remarked. "I'll take it down cloaked, take out whoever is in charge, let you know when to come down."

"That could work," I mused. "Go ahead." Kasumi gave a mock salute as she vanished into thin air, when the elevator arrived, and started going back down with her on it. About ten minutes passed.

"So. There were… three people down here. The CO included. They were drunk. Now they're dead. So come on down, all clear." Well, with that, I got on the comms.

"Mordin, we've cleared out the dig site. Is Shepard in a condition to interact with the Beacon or should we get him some treatment first?" I asked. I didn't see how bad the wound was. All I know is that the shot pierced him through the lung from a Widow.

"Treatment first. Will allow monitored expedition to Prothean artifact after surgery. Extenuating circumstances."

"And how is he right now?" Tali questioned.

"Unconscious. My doing. Inside of the Mako. Will survive, but sooner treatment received, the sooner a full recovery."

"Then we'll plant explosives on the gun emplacements for safety. We'll get him back to the Normandy in half an hour."

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: This one is actually just about the chapter. Having Shep get injured again is part of an idea that goes to River for credit. You'll see the purpose of the injury realized over the next few chapters. It's also an attempt to make Firewalker a bit more interesting. You'll see and understand starting next chapter. Also, you might have noticed I heavily changed this N7 mission. Well, I read up on the planet, this made the most sense to be where the beacon would be, and an essentially vaporized cityscape is likely to be more of a flat lands than a crevice cave system. Plus with all the creds you could make from a beacon? You know that shit is gonna get fortified like Fort Knox.**


	55. Sentinel

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, sorry about tonight's delay as well as te short chapter. I did turn out to have a busy week. One such example, if any of you are familliar with ARMA 3, just tonight I joined the 501st group for ARMA. Tomorrow I'll be doing a shinie test, and I don't know if Sorensic will be there to stream it, but if he is, go to Sorensic Steel on twitch. You can watch me die horribly to clankers for your enjoyment. Among other shinies dying.**

 **Commander John Shepard**

Everything felt numb as I started to come to. I began to open my eyes as my memories of what happened began to return. Instead of looking up at the interior of the Mako, being attended to by Mordin, the ceiling was instead a pristine white. The Normandy med-bay. Sensation returned to some parts of my body. My chest hurt; my breathing labored. Not empty, like when I was shot, but labored. A three fingered hand was grasping my right, and I looked to see Tali asleep in a chair beside me. Like how I did when her mask was broken. Garrus was also in the room, I realized, as I struggled to sit up on my elbows, grunting. He was asleep on a chair against the far wall. While on my left was an IV tapped into my arm. Whether it was sedatives, painkillers, nutrients, or all three in some capacity I couldn't tell. I also noticed how I had a set of air pumps hooked up to my nose. The same kind you normally see hospital patients with. Or the Elderly. The door to the med-bay then opened, revealing Doctor Chakwas stepping in with a mug of coffee. Fresh, by the smell of it.

"I wasn't expecting you to be awake for a few hours yet. But frankly, nothing about you really surprises me anymore."

"That makes two of us."

"Indeed," Chakwas walked over to her desk, sitting down. We were keeping quiet for the sake of the others. "You really should get some more sleep."

"How'd the mission go?" Chakwas chuckled in response, shaking her head.

"The only one even close to being as hurt as you was Grunt, but his wounds were only flesh wounds, and few of them at that. Those are barely pin pricks to a Krogan. Even less still for him. And the beacon down there is intact with a Council team en route to bring it to Council Space. Plenty of time still for you to get some rest then see what it has to tell you before they arrive. You can thank Garrus for sending that message."

"And my condition?"

"The fact you're even coherent right now with the painkillers I've hooked you up to only goes to show what your implants are doing for you. The bullet went right through you, but it struck a rib on the way in. The bullet may have missed the heart by a fair margin, but bone shrapnel was dangerously close to damaging it. But the shrapnel did still tear through your left lung badly. With Mordin's help, I've taken the liberty of starting to grow a cloned lung for you with at least most of the biological modifications Cerberus originally gave them, that way you don't need to worry about whatever replacement they might send you and what they might plant in it. As for the rib? I can't work with the shards that were left, so we're growing a replacement one of those as well. Mordin is also helping me to see that it receives the same reinforcement to its structure as the rest of your skeletal system. Again, without Cerberus meddling."

"Appreciated, Doc. What's my recovery?"

"Well, as it stands, I've sealed your lung, removed the shards of bone, and closed the wound on both sides. With the medicine you'll be receiving and with your modifications, your body should heal itself to the best that it can no sooner than a week from now. But you won't be authorized for combat, not with one of your lungs barely functioning on its own. And trust me, you'll feel it. You need to wait for the lung replacement. The rib won't be ready by then but it's a determining factor for your combat readiness. So. The new lung will be grown and ready in two and a half weeks, followed by at least two days of observation to ensure it works properly. The rib would be the following week and another two days after that. But in-between I'd be willing to clear you for combat."

"Wonderful… And how long are you going to keep me locked up in here?"

"For the week. But if you're a good boy, I may be inclined to let you take your meals in the mess closer to the end of the week."

"Will you at least let me use the actual restroom when I need to?"

"My dear, the answer to that question should be the bedpan you have."

"Damn it," I murmured.

"I may have changed some of your diapers once upon a time, John, but don't think for a second that I ever missed doing so. I'm already being generous by allowing you to return to the surface and take a vision from the beacon tomorrow. On a gurney. Under my supervision. It would take a strong gust of wind to re-open most of your wounds at this stage, John. And Rupert works so hard to keep this ship clean, I won't have you covering it all in blood," she teased. "Now, go back to sleep. If you need, I can provide more sedative."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

The following morning, we wasted no time getting back to the dig site and to the beacon. Garrus and Tali had already been informed by Chakwas about the medical situation, and as what the plan was? They would have to wait until we returned to the ship. I knew what I wanted to do, but I think I'll just tell the whole crew at once. I had remained in the gurney, per Chakwas orders as we took the shuttle down to the surface, and down the elevator to the dig site proper. And finally, to the Beacon. The thin, needle like structure like the two we had seen during the Saren campaign. The base of it still appeared buried. There was no console, but as we approached, a green interface flickered to life.

"It didn't do that last time," Garrus remarked.

"Guess it likes me," I joked. The bed was pulled up beside so that I could reach out and touch the interface. None of it was in English, yet I could understand the symbols perfectly. It was asking permission to interface. One button declining, the other accepting. Naturally, I lifted a finger to accept, followed by a sharp intake of breath as the world flashed to pure white, and then black. First, it was the same images as before. Or at least mostly the same. No, now they were different, slightly. The angles were different, but the surrounding architecture appeared the same, as did the people present. Running, on the ground, dying, screaming, fighting. The Reapers descending and firing. I would assume it to be of wherever the Prothean VI in here was present to record for. Or however they did it for this beacon.

This time, however, entirely new images appeared. A group of Protheans being chased down by Collectors. Collectors being fired upon by Protheans. Collectors clawing into and tearing apart the chest of a Prothean. They were the Husks of the previous cycle, not just a useful Remnant left behind. And then a voice. Deep, masculine, like the one I heard from the Illos beacon, but again, different. As for what I could see, I was back in that grey, dreary, ruined grassland, surrounded by the eerie forest of dead trees under a dark, cloudy sky.

"Human," the voice boomed. As he approached, while he was still a hologram like the others, he was not in robes, but rather in a kind of ornate armor, by the looks of it. "And one who understands. This unit is designated as Sentinel. Your memories indicate you have spoken to other units. And the Reapers have been delayed, as was our goal. And you are already aware of their origins, and intend to strike at them through the Omega-Four relay. This is good. You must annihilate not only them, but every trace of them. They corrupt just as surely as the Reapers themselves."

"Then do you know what they're doing with our people?"

"I do not. The Reapers did not leave behind agents such as the Collectors in our cycle. It was not uncommon for them to drag away wounded soldiers or civilians, but we knew it was for the purpose of creating more Collectors. I cannot be sure why the Reapers decided to leave behind agents for this cycle. We have old records of the Reapers telling us that we were 'incompatible,' early in the days of our extinction. Though what we were incompatible for, we do not know. We can only guess that they still wanted us to be of use after they completed the cycle."

"Is there anything you can tell me?"

"Not that you do not already know. Avenge us, Human. And remember, nothing of the Reaper's slaves can survive." The vision went to black before I could do or say anything, my eyes flickered again, my vision clearing to see the Beacon.

"Damn," I muttered.

"Already? You just pressed it," Garrus spoke up, my hand still outstretched to the button as the interface faded.

"What did it show you?"

"Nothing new," I sighed. "The VI in there recognized that we had already used other beacons and delayed the cycle, that we knew what the Collectors were and such, and that he didn't know what they were up to as they didn't use some Predecessor on the Protheans. The closest he could get to explain why they exist was that the Reapers once said that they were incompatible. For what? No idea.

"Well, hopefully someone can pull some useful information out of it. Tech, I mean," Tali stated.

"One can hope."

* * *

 **Commander John Shepard**

We returned to the ship disappointed, having only gotten hints of worthwhile information. Still, better to put this right into Council hands than Blue Suns. Chakwas made sure to wheel me right back to the med-bay the moment we were back on board, Garrus and Tali still choosing to follow. At least the doc let me make my announcement over the intercom.

"Attention all hands," I began. Doing what I could to bring out the 'Commander' voice. A bit harder, and a little painful, admittedly, as I had only one lung to work with at the moment. "As you are all no doubt aware, I am out of commission for a while thanks to a pair of Bastard Blue Suns snipers. I will not be combat ready for over two weeks' time. But that does not mean the Normandy will be idling away in some dock while I recuperate. Miranda, TIM had hinted that something else had been going on related to yesterday's mission. If he has information for us to follow up on, I want you to deliver the briefing to Garrus and Tali. The former will be acting in my stead while I recover, and Tali, his second. Both are qualified and skilled leaders that I trust to make the right decisions. In the field, you will follow their orders as if they came from my own mouth. No exceptions. And if I hear anything about any of you disobeying their direct orders, I will personally boot your ass off my ship. If you have any questions or concerns, you may speak with me. We're all adults here, and I expect you all to act like it. That's all."

Garrus met my eyes, and nodded after a moment, which I returned.

"Why not just Garrus, John?" Tali asked.

"You already hold a leadership position in the Migrant Fleet, Tali. Don't forget that. If, in the field, Garrus ever needs to divide the squad, I need him to have an option right there that no one will question. Miranda may be a capable leader, but I can't trust her to make the decisions that I know either of you would. And the others either fail into the same category as her, or haven't proven themselves a leader. You two already have my full trust." I paused for a moment.

"I suppose this has made an opportunity for you both to learn to trust yourselves."


	56. Message

**Garrus Vakarian**

I had never used the comm room as anything more than a meeting room, and neither had Tali for that matter. But here we are, Miranda having told us to simply go here and 'TIM' would give us the briefing on this himself. I'm not sure why he wants to give it to us directly, but I don't suppose it matters in the end either. As the comm room table descended into the floor, the lights dimming, we stepped onto the circle in its place. The room went dark, then the lights in front of us revealed a sun in a black, open office, probably with its own holo screens as an office like this, so large and empty, and with no visible windows separating the office from the vacuum of space to the massive sun behind this man in a chair simply wouldn't be possible. As for the man in the chair, I'm limited as to how I can describe him. Smoking a cigarette, some sort of blue ocular implants, older, and a dark suit with a white collared shirt beneath.

"Garrus Vakarian. Tali'Zorah." His voice was formal, not too terribly deep. "Let's skip the introductions. We already know who each other are."

"A mass-murdering psychopathic bastard," Tali hissed. TIM only gave a sideways glance.

"Aequitas, a planet in the Minos Wasteland. A week ago, a mining team went dark after reporting having found a strange artifact. Despite the fact that the planet has no signs of any prior civilizations for the Reapers to have harvested. The reason this should be investigated, however, is that hours after the team went dark, life signs were detected again. Yet, no contact. A local force went in to investigate before going dark themselves, and, finally, additional signs of life being detected. It is my belief that whatever this artifact was is connected to the Reapers, and has more than likely turned both the mining team and the local force into Husks, or something akin to it. If this is confirmed, I have my own team that has been investigating signs of Prothean activity, archaeologically, of course, that has also gone dark after reports of Geth following them. Despite how fundamentally the Commander and I disagree on… the practicality of ideals, among other topics, I do trust him in military tactics and as a judge of militaristic skill and command. Thus, I will extend my trust and confidence in Shepard's successes towards you.

Tali simply made a fist with her right hand, the back of it facing him, and stuck her thumb out from between her fingers. And so, I decided to follow her gesture up with the Turian equivalent. Taking my left index's talon, holding it up and out, and scraping my right index talon against it. He took a very long drag from his cigarette, letting the smoke out in a sigh.

"Right."

* * *

 **Garrus Vakarian**

A day and a half later, we were in orbit over the frontier world. If we were going to be dealing with Husks, then this mission was all going to be short-range focused. But fortunately, we at least know the maximum number of Husks we're likely to be dealing with. Between the mining team and the local force sent in, and assuming every last one was in a condition viable for Husks, we're looking for Forty-Seven total. Shouldn't be too bad. EDI has an LZ for us just outside the mine entrance so all that's left is selecting the team. Grunt is a given, having a Krogan wielding a Claymore alone could probably win the day here. But Tali and I figure it would be smart to take more than we need, and biotics specifically in case part of the mine starts to collapse. So that adds Jack and Samara. And I also suggested Zaeed so that we'd have both him and Grunt making up the front line as we moved down through the mine. We'd load everyone's weapons up with incendiary rounds, and finally, we made sure to pack demolition charges. We didn't even need Shepard's insistence to destroy the Reaper artifact to know that it needed to be done.

And so, we gathered our squad and headed down to the surface, explaining the situation, and plan, along the way. Grunt and Zaeed would be side to side in the front, Tali and I side to side behind them, and Jack and Samara the same behind us. The mines aren't very wide so we can only fit two side to side, and we don't need to worry about spacing as we're only dealing with Husks. As for the planet, it was a rainy night as we landed just outside the mine entrance. The mine clearly still had power, as the floodlights shining out from the entrance were active. We got into formation, weapons at the ready, and proceeded into the mine. Only a few dozen meters in we came to a T-junction. Grunt checked left while Zaeed checked right. As Grunt checked, he immediately opened fire with his Claymore, the shot immediately followed by moaning deformed hisses and snarls. Clearly, there were husks on the left as Zaeed spun around, and opened fire, the two falling back into the entryway and getting down on a knee so we could shoot over them. Running around the corner came a group of Husks, though not all were once Human. Unsurprising, as the world was discovered by the Turians. The Turian decay and cybernetics reminded me of Saren, and also seemed to incorporate the metal already present in our Carapace. Four of them in total came around the corner and were quickly left as charred, burning, shredded corpses. We held position a moment longer in case the gunfire was bringing any more to us. After a minute of waiting, we heard nothing and saw nothing.

"How many were around the corner?" I questioned.

"Three," Zaeed answered. Forty more. I added the other three to my kill tracker to keep track. "And the right side is caved in."

"Understood." Zaeed and Grunt got back to their feet and we proceeded further into the mine, past the three additional corpses, and starting a path down. It curved around to the right, but Grunt stopped in his tracks.

"I hear footsteps. Around the corner. I took my shotgun and tapped it against the support beam near me a few times, a clanging sound echoing through the mine.

"Backwards to the T-junction. Just shoot as they come around," I called out as the Husks were clearly reacting, screeching and growling from around the corner. Mostly Turian husks, but some Human, and even what seemed to be a Salarian, even more spindly than usual and with one horn missing, and the other just metal overshot the corner, almost tripping over themselves as they attempted to redirect towards us. Their mechanical eyes and the lights over their bodies the same blue light that they were two years ago. Undoubtedly the best thing about fighting in such narrow corridors against Husks was that our shotgun blasts could easily penetrate the rotting flesh and tear into the Husks behind them as well. While only the slug of the Claymore could consistently do penetration kills against Husks, some shots still went through into the head of the Husk behind our targets thanks to the incline they were running up. And this group was significantly larger than the last. When it was done, I counted another eighteen kills for the team. Twenty-Two left. If not for our helmets, the air would be thick with the stench of burning flesh. After holding position for another moment, and no further contacts, we proceeded. We quickly came across what seemed to have been a common area, probably where most of the Husks had been when we got their attention.

Pushing even further, as signs of minerals became more common, parts of the mine that hadn't been cleared out, we came across a large, open chamber. If not a natural formation, it wasn't part of the mine, that much was certain. And at the back wall was some form of machine. The artifact, clearly, and made of the same metal as Sovereign. At least it appeared so. But between the architecture, the strange purple light at the top of it, the slight headache, and the fact that all twenty-two of the remaining Husks were standing in this chamber, staring at the damn thing? Reaper artifact. But strangely no Dragon's teeth. They hadn't noticed us yet.

"A grenade at the center of the chamber should be able to take out several husks without causing the cave to collapse. As soon as it hits the ground, open fire at the Husks closest," I ordered. The center of the chamber should be… twenty-five meters out. I took a grenade from my belt, and cooked it, counting to three before throwing. I released the breath I was holding as I saw it impact right around where I meant it to. The others had already fired a shot from their weapons by the time I took aim and killed another Husk. All of them shot their heads around to stare at us as the grenade went off, killing five, while our shotguns had killed the same amount. With only twelve left and most of them at a distance, putting them was simple. The comms chimed, signaling that EDI was about to speak.

"I am required to inform you that the Illusive Man would like the artifact to remain intact. I have also warned him that such an outcome is highly unlikely."

"Don't tell me he expected a different outcome," I chuckled.

"Very well. Then I have identified structural weak points both on the machine and in the surrounding cave. A collapse should destroy whatever is left from the charges on the artifact. If you suspect deception, please, scan the locations and verify." Tali wasted no time at all starting her scans, though she focused on the cave, not wanting to get too focused on the Reaper artifact,

"EDI is… telling the truth," she almost huffed, as if hoping to catch the AI in a lie. We planted the charges quickly, setting them up to a detonator on my Omni-tool and rushed out of the cave. Only when we were in the shuttle and taking off did I press the button. There was no vibration to feel until I saw a shockwave followed by smoke and fire exit the mine. Seems like a job well done.

* * *

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

When we returned to the ship, I had immediately gone to check on John, but he was asleep. And just recently, according to Dr. Chakwas. I want to be here when he wakes up, but since he's patched up and I need to do my job in engineering… I feel torn.

"You could leave something for him," a familiar voice called out from behind. Startled, I turned around immediately to see a small, human woman grinning back at me. Kasumi.

"Wha-Where? Kasumi!" She giggled.

"What? Your boyfriends hurt and you keep turning your head left and right, starting to head to the seat by him, starting to head out of the medical bay. I can put the pieces together Tali," she crossed her arms over her chest, still smiling. Leave him something for when he wakes up."

"Like… what?" I regained my composure. Kasumi shrugged.

"Something small. Maybe some candy. Maybe a note telling him what's been going on. That you miss him. Maybe a book or magazine, or something like that. Maybe a picture of something pretty you see on a mission."

"Well, I don't know what candies he would like, or what books."

"Then why don't you leave him a message, and have some idle chit-chat with him later for ideas?"

"I can do that. But... do you think you could help me write it? The only things I can think of are…" I tried to think of the right words. "Like a boring mission report, or a weird and probably way too creepily 'romantic.'

"Sure! Just follow me to my office," Kasumi remarked, taking me by the hand and dragging me towards her room. When there, I sat on the couch while she sat on her bed, changing position constantly. Eventually, what we had put together as a message on the Omni-tool started by briefly touching on the mission. Simply that it went off without a hitch. That I hope when he reads it, he's feeling better and that I'll be there at the end of my shift to keep him company. That if there's anything he needs; he should let me know. Kasumi did, however, suggest one final and strange addition to the message. Less than Three, but in its equation form. Nothing in the equation that would be 'less than three.' It didn't make sense until Kasumi explained. The symbols for Three and less than, for humans, creates the shape of a heart. Which, apparently, in human culture represents love. Of course, this brought on new concern, as I didn't want a message to be how I told him that I love him for the first time, but Kasumi reassured me by explaining that while it symbolizes love, it's use doesn't carry the same weight as the word itself. It's closer to being used for endearment. I took her word for it.


	57. Hammerhead

**AUTHOR'S NOTE Next week is spring break so I should be able to get a more sizeable chapter out. Maybe use the stuff discussed in the end to write another space battle. Additionally, I might try to do one of two things. Either get a chapter out the following Friday, or the following Monday with the extra time I should hopefully have on me. I am sorry about the length of the chapters being as short as they have been. It's a mix of procrastination and other lack of time. Sorry again.**

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

Barely a day had passed since the mine before we were preparing for our next mission in just once cluster over. This time, the Illusive Man had elected to simply have Miranda explain the mission to us. The short version was that Cerberus had attached two agents to a Human survey vessel, the Cerberus personnel with the purpose of Prothean research on the planets the vessel would visit, and the vessel itself to field-test the Alliances latest prototype ground vehicle, dubbed the M-44 Hammerhead. The ship had gone missing in the Ismar Frontier, the Elysta system, on the planet Zeona, after a report from the Scientists of having noticed signs of Geth along their trail.

The planet itself was highly volcanic and tectonically unstable. The atmosphere unbreathable by any sapient race. EDI had just completed scanning and located signs of the research team, though no signs of Geth now. We had the location of the Hammerhead and a small facility built in the side of a network of Volcanic fissures. The site the Hammerhead was located at, strangely, was a few kilometers from the main facility. Too far a distance in hostile terrain for us to move on foot, and too hazardous to take a shuttle from one place to the other. The solution was simple. Use the Hammerhead. I had gone over the schematics and it was essentially a low flying V-TOL that would generally remain a few meters off the ground, and additional thrust could be applied, albeit temporarily, to give it the power needed for significant vertical thrust. In simple terms, it was much more maneuverable than the Mako. Though it appears to have sacrificed much in the way of durability and structural integrity. It would not last long in a firefight without it's shields, save against small arms fire. Offensively, it only had one weapon, a homing micro-missile launcher attached to the top of the Hammerhead. But it's still Alliance tech and methods, so it should be like the Mako in that regard.

As for Shepard, we have yet to have the conversation Kasumi suggested I have with him. When I had gone into the med-bay to sleep, Chakwas had told me I had just missed him awake, but she did move one of the medical beds to be beside John so that I could rest easier than in a chair. And in the morning, he was still asleep, and I needed to prepare for the mission.

Considering the Hammerhead was not made with the intention of being a troop transport, it only has space for its crew of three. The pilot, the gunner, and the engineer. I would obviously be the Engineer, however Garrus had elected to take Miranda as the pilot as TIM sends her flight sims of prototype vehicles, and she had been running the Hammerhead's during the last months of the Lazarus project. While Garrus would be the gunner.

We took the shuttle down before too long, a relatively sizeable sinkhole in the black volcanic rock making up most of the planet's surface, interrupted by streams of molten rock being out destination. A large shipping container was the only unnatural feature. The shuttle touched down in front of it, Miranda exiting the cockpit as we disembarked, and autopilot returning the shuttle to the Normandy, which was holding a low orbit around the AO. Opening the container was a simple matter for myself, and the Hammerhead was revealed. It was currently all in white, two wings out from the front with vertical jet thrusters at the far ends of both wings, and the cockpit being a two-pronged housing. The left side for the gunner, the right for the engineer, and at the center of the cockpit behind the prong extrusions was the pilot. At the overall center of the vehicle was a single large vertical thruster that provided the main source of lift. The other two more with the purpose of providing direction. And the horizontal thrusters were located behind that, much smaller comparatively to the other thrusters. And finally, the micro missile launcher atop the cabin. Another shortcoming of said turret was that it was locked facing forwards. It could tilt up and down but could only fire on what the vehicle was facing. The entry stairs were already open, in the cabin underneath the turret. The only purpose of this space being a narrow pathway for the crew to take their seats. At least each crew position, certainly too small for a Krogan, but able to snugly fit the three of us, were all individually sealed off. Metal boxes, essentially, to protect us from damage to another portion or to jettison the three compartments, even in a vacuum, safely in emergency situations. Like in the Mako, we only were able to see our surroundings outside of the Hammerhead when it was powering up and fully activated. Screens making up the portion of our capsules at head height, and consoles at torso and below. Screens and sensors and cameras to give us visuals.

As the hammerhead came to life, the hum of the engines were clear, though not deafening. We could still hear one another, and the sounds of the volcanic environment with ease. Just with the undertone humming of the Hammerhead's power core.

"Systems check: Weapons are green," Garrus called out.

"All nav systems check as green."

"Power, shields, and thrust, green."

"Miranda, take us out to the first site." Miranda did not verbally respond, simply taking to the task, driving us ahead. Nature had made a ramp ahead for us, and Miranda simply sent us up it and activated the vertical thrusters to launch us further ahead along the path to the first site. Which was already separated by a gap, though simply falling forward would have had us "land" above solid volcanic rock rather than a river of lava. Repeating this process as the terrain allowed, with or without 'ramps' we proceeded forward until some wreckage blocked our path. But it was thin, and a single micro missile cleared the way. This was our ticket out of the sinkhole. And while the sinkhole was stable, the area around the site was not. And our journey to the main facility showed us just how volcanic the planet was. The amount of solid rock to navigate with dropped substantially. And we were constantly 'jumping' with a V-TOL over large lakes and rivers of molten rock through outcroppings of solid rock in the fissures. Arriving at the base was a garage for the Hammerhead, and as we parked, the volcano rumbled, leaving us all with the idea that it would be wise to leave the Hammerhead on standby, rather than deactivating it. We disembarked quickly, entering the facility. White walls, structural supports, and then a bridge into the main facility with reinforced glass walls and ceiling, while the floor was a reinforced grate allowing you to see through holes in the floor to the river of magma below. Which did nothing to calm my nerves.

And still, no bodies of any personnel. We followed the facility schematics to what should be the hub of their research. Windows at the far side of the room looking over another lake of molten rock. Miranda quickly moved to a console to retrieve data.

"I have a data log from Dr. O'Loy. He seems paranoid and adamant at the same time about preventing another Eden Prime. Dr. Cayce and he both believed that this site was a kind of star map to a main Prothean site and they agreed the data should remain secret. They took the data the base's sensors had gathered of the star map and then deleted the on-site copies. I can only presume they went to the main site next."

"Can we recover where the main site would be?" Garrus asked.

"We can, however we'd need to reactivate the main power grid, connect EDI to the base's systems as it recompiles the data. That process should be fast, considering what we're looking for has already been detected, and that they appear to have forgotten to change anything about the scanners to prevent the Geth from doing the same we plan to."

"And you're sure they forgot, rather than pretending to with some trap?"

"I am. While the data of the logs have been manipulated, gaps in code, the rest is untouched. No rewrites. Nothing. Cayce and O'Loy were simply scientists in Cerberus' loose employ, not exactly analysts. However, they do note how the power grid does not interact kindly with the volcanoes' tectonic activity. It seems the base's power core was not properly shielded, and the mass effect field it generates influences the surrounding terrain. Knocking lose any portion here will likely lead to an eruption."

"Will we have time to evacuate?"

"No need to worry about that. I'll just get EDI connected to the base's systems while we make for an extraction point. EDI can activate the sensors and retrieve the data while we're re-boarding the Normandy." Miranda took a spare transmitter and connected it to one of the base's consoles, ensuring the connection wouldn't be ruined by how far we may be from the facility.

"Unfortunately, your path of entry is not viable to return to any extraction point. However, there is a path upwards from the facility that will lead to the surface, allowing for a safe extraction for both the crew and the Hammerhead," EDI chimed through the comms.

"Sounds good, we'll make our way there immediately." We wasted no time in returning to the Normandy through the new route plotted by EDI. We had the time to be cautious and ensure any 'jumps' were accurate and calculated. Finding ourselves to the surface and the Normandy coming down for a height that the Hammerhead could dock within the Normandy. We attached the Hammerhead to a cargo crane in the Normandy while the Mako was planted to the port side. And as the cargo bay began to close, EDI chimed up again. "Activating the sensors, volcanic activity increasing exponentially." The AI paused a moment. "Data recovered. There are two worlds. Correlating with the logs I also took the liberty of recovering from the base, one is already being excavated by Geth, the other is the main site that Doctors Cayce and O'Loy. The former is closer than the latter, however both are on the far side of the Galaxy."

"Can't say I'm inclined to just let the Geth keep digging. But I don't want to risk them getting to the main site before us. How much would stopping to see if the Geth presence is something we can stop delay us from the main site?" Garrus asked.

"Five hours," The AI answered.

"Not too bad," Garrus mused. "I'll see if Shepard can help us organize an Alliance force to let us strike both quickly.

"The commander has just recently awoken for a meal. Shall I inform Mr. Moreau to set course for the main site?"

"For now. You already said that they're along the way. ETA?"

"Two days and ten hours."

"Understood. Tali, I assume you're coming along?"

"I was looking to talk to him anyways."

"Then I'll go file the report."


	58. Orb

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: I just want it out for the record without giving much away, that the last few chapters, including this and the next, involving so many Prothean relics being found and recovered is going to be more important to the story than giving Garrus a self-confidence boost. Everyone knows that Firewalker is, like all the other N7 missions in ME2 completely meaningless in that they have 0 effect on anything in 3. But there was another Prothean Beacon found, and the first one Humanity found taught us how to use eezo for space travel on top of having a vault of working prothean transportation tech to work with on Mars. Then we later learn of the Crucible through it. The Alliance won't be able to immediately have these relics and information and just magically be able to produce whatever prothean tech is related to the beacon. They need to decrypt, decipher, translate and then apply technical terms and equations to the knowledge they already have. And then of course re-develop it with the technology they have. There will be benefits to the pointlessness of Firewalker in my story. They just can't feasibly be achieved in ME2. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

We all made our way into the elevator and exited on the same floor, deck three, but Miranda turned to the right and Garrus and I to the left. Her to her office, us to the Med-bay. As we entered, Chakwas was working at her desk with a cup of coffee, and Shepard was sitting up in his bed, a tray pulled up to rest his plate. It appeared to just be some levo bread with two green plants and some cooked strips of meat. He was in the middle of a bite, seeing us enter, his eyes lit up and he swallowed, setting his meal down, revealing a grin.

"Good to see you both," John spoke, more silent than usual. Unsurprising, considering the circumstances. And his breath faster. "I guess the mission went well, then."

"Well enough," Garrus answered first. "Got the Hammerhead, got data on the research team. Two sites, Geth on their tails. Neither far from each other, and both along the same route. Geth already digging on one Prothean site, the scientists to another."

"What's your plan?"

"You're… not making one?"

"You were on the ground," he had to stop early and breathe. "You have a better impression," another breath to finish the sentence. "Than I."

"Well, I had a few thoughts. I don't want to just let the Geth keep digging, but I don't want to just leave the dig site for Geth to potentially hit. I thought maybe we could get an Alliance force to stop the digging while we get to the scientists."

"Where are the Geth digging?"

"In the Hawking Eta cluster. I know the Alliance lays claim there. The system is Verr, the planet, Corang"

"And where's the main site?"

"Hades Nexus, Hoplos system, Kopis."

"I'll send a message to Hackett. Maybe he can send a scout there ahead of us before anything beyond is committed. But I know having Geth in our borders will certainly elicit some response." Like before, he had to breathe often, interrupting his sentences. "So, how's the hammerhead?"

"Well it's certainly agile. We haven't been in combat with it, but considering Tali's analysis of the schematics? I'm not eager to be the ones testing that."

"The Hammerhead can undoubtedly get us to far more places than the Mako could and do so far faster. But I'd hesitate to call it anything more than a scouting vehicle. There's no room to transport troops and the shields are the only meaningful defense. Especially against Geth. Naturally if I were to take a pistol to the Hammerhead it would be fine, but even armor piercing rounds may pose a threat. And of course, plasma would not have an issue melting through," I explained. John furrowed his brow.

"Well I can't say that I don't see the value in it, but unless the environment demands it, I'd sooner take the Mako in the field. At least unless the environment demands it. Alright, let me send the message now before I pass out and forget.

"Then I'll leave you two be. Just let me know once you have a response."

"Will do," John responded without looking up, simply having his Omni-tool activated and typing away. Garrus took his leave after a quick farewell to Chakwas and it returned to silence as John put together the message. I may be here to get ideas on things I could leave for him if he's asleep when I go on a mission or need to work, but that can wait until he's finished with this. Fortunately, it didn't take long before he pressed one last key on his Omni-tool then set it down to lay back. Not closing his eyes yet, but lying back, nonetheless.

"So, what's up with you, beautiful?" Even still it caught my breath and brought out an immediate blush as Chakwas scoffed.

"Please smack him for me, would you, dear?"

"Oh, come on, doc, really?" John chuckled.

"You know how much that line makes you sound like an utter jackass. To your girlfriend or not."

"Anyways," I redirected the conversation. "I thought we could talk more. Hobbies and… other things you like."

"Oh, sure, I can do that. Go back and forth?"

"Like before, yes. Do you want to go first? Or should I?" John seemed to gather his breath but gestured at me instead of speaking.

"I'm only filing reports, so I'll move myself to crew quarters and leave you two with some privacy. But I still have a heartbeat monitor on John. So, if I get the idea that he's being… stimulated, I am throwing flashbangs into my med-bay," Chakwas interrupted as she stood from her desk.

"Stimu-? Oh, Keelah, no!" I shuddered.

"She's just teasing, Tali. Though… she absolutely would."

"Damn right I would." The door closed behind her. I sighed and collected myself again. "Well, what's a favorite past-time?"

"Oh, damn. Past time huh? I mean I love shooting the shit with buddies, but I get the sense you mean something to do on my own, right?" I nodded. "Well, that's not really something I've had for myself in a long time. I don't remember if I mentioned to you or not that I liked to use the simulator pods as I was growing up on Arcturus, but those were up there. Specifically, I enjoyed the more casual flight combat sims, and while I actually did a good job, the true sims for flight were less fun and more stressful. Second, as archaic as it sounds, I loved ones for medieval combat. Getting myself suited up in full steel plate, a shield on my left arm and a longsword in my right. To this day I believe it to be one of my favorite art forms."

"Art form?"

"Yeah, I remember you telling me that Quarian history is more peaceful than Human history, but I figure there must be hundreds of manuscripts compiled from various sword masters since they were first created. From different civilizations with different styles of sword to combatting different defenses developed over time. Fencing, which is a human sport of two individuals in protective padding dueling with long but very thin Rapier-like swords, and they're a little floppy isn't my kind of thing, however. My favorite thing that I've ever heard of is when you unscrew the pommel of the sword, which for us was typically a metal ball at the bottom of the grip, and just fucking throwing it at your opponent's head. 'End them rightly,' it was called." John began a wheezing laughter as he slowly worked his way through his answer. "So, same question to you."

"Well, I haven't really had downtime to myself since I was last on the Neema, but, and you probably guessed this, but I like to tinker. It's how I made Chattika."

"Follow up question then, do, or, did Quarians have a pet species back on Rannoch?"

"We did, actually. Several kinds, like humans. None have existed on the fleet in over a century, but their genomes are still stored for when we have a planet again someday. While Rannoch has plenty of predators and prey, there are still many symbiotic relationships, even between flora and fauna. More so than other home worlds. Possibly because life on Rannoch evolved without insects."

"No insects? That alone makes it sound like paradise," John struggled to chuckle.

"I'm happy enough that it doesn't have arachnids."

"Even better."

"Anyways, our favored pet race, and the ones we've had for the longest, are most like Earth's felines. The Var'San. My turn again. What about… your favorite kind of literature?"

"Favorite genre? Alright, well, Humanity is currently living what was most of our science fiction. I still like the genre, as most of what's out there isn't really like what things were like, but with non-fiction being my absolute least favorite, that's dragged it down aa little. Probably fantasy then."

"And why's nonfiction your least favorite?"

"We live non-fiction every day of our lives," he shrugged. More often than not it just seems mundane and boring. Especially compared to lives like ours. I'd rather read about something fantastical and different and unique."

"I understand that. Outside of our schooling, however, we didn't have much opportunity for reading. And most of what we would read were textbooks."

"Yeah, those weren't really ever fun. So, when you did have time to read, what was your favorite genre?" I began to blush out of embarrassment.

"Oh… um…" I began wringing my hands together. "Romance novels… Teenage or young adult romance novels. I'd find them on the extranet…" John smiled.

"That actually fits you. So, how do we compare to your favorites?"

"Better. We're not just another story."

* * *

 **Garrus Vakarian**

Shepard had gotten a response from Hackett an hour after sending his message, informing the Commander that he was sending a scouting force to both systems in question. It was reaching the evening of the following day now. Shepard had gone to sleep again, and Joker had just informed me that we were receiving a call from Admiral Hackett. And as I'm the XO in his medical leave, it falls to me to answer. I only ever met the Admiral once, during Shepard's funeral, and there had not exactly been any real introductions. But I know Shepard holds the Admiral in high regard, and what parts of his file are public that I've been able to see don't leave many questions as to why. Hopefully he's already aware that it may be a Turian and not a Human responding to him. For privacy, I took the call in the comm room. Instead of the whole "show" for calling the Illusive Man, the lights dimmed, and a screen appeared above the table so that I could see the aged Admiral. There was a slight brow raise, hinting at least mild surprise.

"Garrus Vakarian? I assume the Commander is unable to take the call then."

"That's correct, sir. I've been acting as his XO since he was injured."

"The Commander informed me that I may end up speaking with you rather than him. But both he and Councilor Anderson reassured me that he trusts you explicitly. If Shepard has vouched for you, let's begin."

"Of course, Admiral."

"Three hours ago, a pair of UT-47A Kodiak shuttles, experimental models using a variant of the Normandy stealth technology simultaneously infiltrated both the Verr and Hoplos systems. We detected no Geth presence in Hoplos, but in Verr, the Geth have a sizeable naval task force present to hold the system. The population centers present, as minor as they are, appear untouched at least for now. Though the comm buoys connecting them to the rest of the galaxy are destroyed. The flagship is a heavy cruiser, two additional cruisers. Five frigates, three of which patrolling together, the other two spread out. Eight destroyers, and fifteen corvettes. It's around twice the size of the fleet that had invaded the Armstrong Nebula. Whatever is down there the Geth must think is valuable. Vice Admiral Bradford, you may remember her as a Rear Admiral, is en-route in her Carrier with her detachment of the 5th fleet. Three dreadnaughts, five cruisers, two of which are heavy cruisers, eight frigates, fourteen destroyers, and twenty corvettes."

"That is certainly… significant, Admiral."

"It's how Humans are. The Geth are learning the same lesson as the Batarians. When you attack not just humanity, but our civilians, we retaliate _hard._ If the Turians had done so at Shanxi, well, for better or worse the Alliance may not have been as open as we were to a truce. The Geth have a foothold in our territory. We're not going to remove their foot from the foothold, we're going to cut off the entire leg. And if they return to Geth space with the artifacts present, there's no telling how many lives, human and otherwise might be the price. This may be a little over a third of the 5th fleet, but most of these ships are veterans of the Citadel. The only true complication is that we don't want to risk destroying whatever artifacts are already aboard their Heavy cruiser. Because of this, the Hawking is being outfitted with an additional wing of boarding craft and all ships are under strict orders that the heavy cruiser is a shoot to disable only. Engines and weapons, avoiding to fire at the center compartment of the ship. Wreckage studied from the Citadel as well as the schematics from the Migrant Fleet indicate that if anywhere will store the artifacts, it's in there."

"And the Normandy's role?"

"By the time the fleet arrives, the Normandy will have arrived in Hoplos and likely finished your objective. The fleet will gather in Chandrasekhar. The Normandy will regroup with the fleet there and be given its assignment.

"Understood."

* * *

 **Garrus Vakarian**

Even by the time it took for us to finally arrive at Kopis, no Geth presence had arrived. Hopefully we had cut their trail off cold and wouldn't be seeing them at all here. Thanks in part to the map we had recovered, we had located the dig site almost immediately. There wasn't much, considering the two Doctors had been using a survey ship as it had already neared the end of its mission. There was an excavation drill and a landing pad. All of this was within a crater on the planet's surface, and the dig site itself was at the center, making an additional smaller "crater" so to speak. Inside appeared to be an airlock. To what, exactly, I'm not sure. Possibly whatever ruin may have been left behind for the relic. Might as well just take the shuttle down. Myself, Tali, Samara, Grunt, and… Kasumi. That should do just fine. We didn't have time to waste. If we wanted to regroup with the fleet by the time, they arrived at the Rendezvous we needed to be done here by the end of the hour. I gathered the team at the shuttle, everyone geared up, and took the shuttle down to the dig site. It was nighttime on this moon, but it was hardly dark. The moon had enough atmosphere and was currently at a point in its orbit where the planet reflected light to Kopis and dimly lit the night sky. But the light hardly matters, as we're going underground regardless.

We exited the shuttle onto the rocky terrain. We could hear our footsteps and the faint sound of wind. Nothing more. While the airlock was, well, locked, it didn't stay that way long with Tali ready to make her little work around and we gained entry. While we did have to wait for the airlock to cycle, I wasn't exactly concerned. No signs of Geth and all that were here should be a pair of scared Cerberus scientists. We opened the airlock and proceeded down, and surprisingly; we quickly came to the corpse of a Blue Sun merc. Now I'm concerned.

"Probably contacts. Kasumi, cloak and scout ahead. We'll be moving up, but I want to know if we're about to step in front of Geth," I ordered. Kasumi nodded, her cloak activating, and she faded from sight. "Move out, on me." I took point and we continued our way down the dig site. I'm not sure how old these ruins were, but they were crumbling.

"Got a group of merc bodies up ahead. Looks like they died when a portion of the ruins collapsed on them," Kasumi spoke through comms.

"Understood." Just a moment later we came by the bodies. Three of them, blue suns. Clearly crushed by rubble.

"Got a terminal here. And bodies. Two, neither are suns. Both with bullets through the head. One of them looks like it was from behind. The other is holding the pistol. Checking the terminal to see if I can find anything about this." Kasumi paused a moment as we continued. She didn't speak up until we arrived at the chamber she was likely already in. Considering a terminal at the far end was skimming through files without anyone at it.

"Dr. Cayce seems to have caught O'Loy transmitting copies of their data to a Geth ship. Indoctrinated, he assumed. He offed O'Loy, and a few hours later he left another log. Hearing whispers in his head, stealing his knowledge. He can't keep them out. He decided to destroy the relic and himself. But…" Kasumi paused another moment and then to the right, a set, or circle, rather of stone pillars began rumbling. They lowered, allowing passage and revealing the relic in question. Unharmed, so it seems. My eyes widened and my mandibles flickered out in surprise.

"Keelah," I heard Tali mutter.

"EDI," I began. "Get me a scan on this relic. Does it appear to have any indentations? Any flaws in the sphere?" The AI took a moment to respond.

"Negative. The entire surface is entirely smooth. However, this artifact is… confusing. It's measurements and weight are fluctuating, rapidly. It seems to fluctuate between traits of a solid and traits of a liquid. I believe it requires the touch of an organic. Literally. Be prepared to receive data."

"Well, Shepard was fine after the last one we found. Stand by. Everyone, activate Omni-tools and prepare them to download and store data." I prepared my own and approached the large silvery sphere, almost seeming as if it had waves on its surface, moving like the ocean. Slowly I extended a talon out to touch it. As it tapped the edge a ripple of green energy pulsed around the sphere, then again, and three more times in rapid succession as there was a burst of green energy almost blinding across the entire sphere. Before it slammed against the ground, small enough to hold in the palm of my hand.

"Massive outburst of encrypted data. I believe we have at least most of the information. Recommend an immediate return to the ship with the relic. It is possible that the ship that retrieved this information is among the Geth fleet in the Hawking Eta." I picked up the now smaller sphere, surprised by how light it felt.

"On our way. Double time, people!"


	59. Boarding Action

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys! As of yesterday, Tuesday, my work decided they'd be closing down due to everything, and my school has shifted to online classes. If not for me having worked through the weekend I may have had this out for you earlier. Though that being said, if I'm honest, I spent a lot of this chapter just trying to figure out what I was going to do with it. Planning a space battle, trying to make it unique compared to the previous, what would Alliance Boarding Craft be like, etc. I spent a lot of time trying to think while staring at the screen and that can be agitating. So it took some more time. So I don't spoil, when you finish the chapter, please read that author's note too. But before you go on, just know that with the shit going on right now and the large amount of free time dumped on me, I'll see about getting some more chapters out to move this story along. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Garrus Vakarian**

We arrived at the rendezvous half an hour early and had been waiting a safe distance from the relay so that any drift from the fleet moving through the relay doesn't put us at risk. I've been spending the time on the bridge chatting with Joker and watching for activity through the Relay. It was still visible at our distance, barely, but it is a massive structure in space after all. And glowing bright blue. Finally, there were a series of flashes out in front of the relay, lots of them, and all relatively close together.

"That's all of them, taking us in closer. Contacting the fleet now." Joker keyed the comms as the ship's engines came back to life and we began approaching the fleet. No FTL, but it'll only take a few minutes. "SSV Hawking this is SSV Normandy SR-2 reporting in." There was a pause before the carrier's comms officer responded.

"We read you, Normandy. Be advised, Vice Admiral Stanford has requested your CO take a shuttle to the Hawking for the planning of the operation. We will provide a shuttle if you require."

"Acknowledged, Hawking. We have our own shuttles. Be advised our CO is in the Med-bay and not permitted by our Medical Officer to depart. Unless ordered otherwise our XO will be taking his place."

"Understood Normandy. That's all. Hawking out."

"Way to put me on the spot," I teased.

"Anything for you. We continued our flight and as Joker looked at one of his displays he nearly burst into laughter. "Oh shit," he interrupted himself trying to stop laughter. "Oh, that's gonna be good."

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, don't worry about it. You'll see. I'll watch. And I'll have a grand old time."

"There's nothing I can do to… persuade you to tell me, is there."

"No, not really. This is going to be too good." I didn't respond, just continued to watch through the viewports as the ships came into view. If the Turians haven't found a military equal in Humanity, we have certainly found the closest we might ever see. I think I'll know for sure once we see Humanity in a full out war. Hm, and that may not be too far off, all things considered. This should be close enough. I made my way down to the hangar and took the shuttle to the Hawking, EDI guiding me to the proper ship. My shuttle had certainly been tracked the whole way, so passage was allowed, and the hangar doors opened Human carriers were built similarly to the aircraft carriers their navy used while still locked on Earth. They still looked more like spaceships, and they make use of the fact that the bottom of the ship can be used to hold and release even more fighters. There are technically two hangars. The top and the bottom. The former being what was opening for me now. It covered the entirety of the hull, the top of the ship actually splits open to reveal the entirety of the hangar bay from end to end of the ship, and where ships actually dock still being protected by the hull. This same model is mirrored on the underside, and at both the bow and rear of the ship there's secondary exits in case it's not safe to exit through the main opening or if it's jammed or whatever reason. Lights along the hangar lit up green to lead me to the specific dock I was supposed to land in. Towards the center. I slowed the shuttle and turned into the hangar, which did, the one bay meant for this purpose rather than having more fighter craft. I set the shuttle down in one of the designated spaces and disembarked. There were some engineers present and, I would assume pilots, were surprised that a Turian was the one disembarking. But they didn't stop me. I simply made my way to the elevator and took it down to the bridge. Everything else in the ship, aside from the hangars, was in the center of the ship, better protected and allowing more room for the hangars. It wasn't long before I arrived, and the doors opened to the bridge. There was a woman waiting when the elevator opened. I noticed the tag on her chest read Yeoman, like Chambers on the Normandy. She had opened her mouth to speak but was clearly surprised at who had disembarked.

"You- You must be the Normandy's XO, then?" I pulled up my Omni-tool to quickly show my information and my ties to the Normandy. As technically unofficial as it is. "Very well, this way. The rest of the leadership is already gathered."

"Thank you." She led me straight to the right and through a door into a small security room. A scanner and a table for me to set known items on. Standard, at least on more important ships. I relinquished my pistol and knife to be checked and walked through the scanner as prompted by the guards in the room. They were returned when nothing else was found on me and the next set of doors opened to reveal the war room. In the center was a holo table with the Geth fleet around Corrang on display. At the controls for the table another Human woman of darker skin and darker hair, with the Alliance bars of a Vice Admiral on her shoulder. Around the tables were various other officers of the ships present. The Yeoman began to speak up to announce me before a familiar voice of an older woman shot out.

"Garrus? Where is he?! Where the f-" she stopped herself, staring me down. Oh. Oh, now I know what Joker thought was 'too good.' "Where is my son, Garrus?" I noticed some amused smirks amongst the officers.

"He-It's good to see you again, Ma'am. The Commander is currently recovering in the Normandy's med-bay. Doctor Chakwas has not yet cleared him to leave."

"What happened, then?" Hannah Shepard began to calm.

"We were engaging a Blue Suns fortified location in the Terminus where a Prothean beacon had been found. They were likely going to demand a ransom, but we went in, cleared the area, and secured the Beacon for the Alliance. While on the ground, the Commander took a shot that struck a bone in his chest, you'll forgive me if I forget the name of a Human bone, and it shattered and tore through his lung like a shotgun blast. Chakwas expects him to be used to a single lung in two more days, with the replacement finished growing in another week or so." Hannah turned back to the Vice Admiral.

"Vice Admiral Bradford, I am formally requesting that we delay the assault on Verr by an additional hour after the plan so that I may see my resurrected son."

"We will require some final preparations regardless. That time and what's left of the following hour will be yours. Now," she turned her attention to me. "Garrus…"

"Vakarian, Ma'am."

"Garrus Vakarian, it's obvious that in the Commander's absence you are acting as XO. I understand you served on the original Normandy as well. So, I'm sure you remember the Geth incursion in the Armstrong Nebula. How I used the Normandy with its stealth drive to bring a pair of fighters armed with disruptor torpedoes to disable the shields of the Geth cruisers at the start of the battle. It is also my understanding that the Normandy 'SR-2' is a larger and even more advanced frigate than its predecessor. However, if the ship's specs are within any Alliance Database, not even I can access them. Thus, I would formally request that you provide them."

"I don't have the specifications on me, but I can certainly request them from the ship."

"Very well. However, you will speak through our channels. Understand that this is not out of distrust of you or the Commander. Admiral Hackett briefed me on the Normandy's situation. That will suffice as an explanation, I'm sure."

"Of course, ma'am." A tech in the room quickly set me through the ship's own communications and I was patched through to Joker. I got him to get me on the line with Miranda, and to my surprise she provided the ship's specs with ease. As I saw the specs myself at the end of the transfer, it was not at all lost on me that anything even remotely mentioning or relating to EDI wasn't present. Pays to be prepared.

"I remember that the previous Normandy had a limitation with its stealth drive entering and exiting FTL. This iteration no longer has that problem?"

"Correct. The SR-2 has several improvements upon the previous design."

"Excellent. That will reduce a delay in one stage of my plan. I do find it curious how the Normandy is still only armed with Javelin missiles, despite having the room and power output to support at least a sizable Mass Accelerator cannon."

"I've noticed the same as well. This is a discussion for another time, but the Commander and I both want to see about fixing that. In exchange, our Chief Engineer as invented and tested a new method for generating Kinetic barriers for a ship that's stronger than what we can currently create. It's been passing every simulation."

"If true that is indeed monumental," Bradford began as several officers murmured amongst themselves in surprise. "But yes, a discussion for another time. I also see that the Normandy's hangar bay is significantly larger than the last. Though it seems space is currently being taken by the presence of a Mako and a Hammerhead scout Rover, as well as one additional shuttle. Very well." She took a deep breath and began. "Normandy, I am going to require that your cargo bay be emptied of these craft so that I can replace them with three fighters armed with disruptor torpedoes. Your vehicles will be returned after the operation. Like before, using your stealth drive you will infiltrate the Geth fleet and leave each fighter, it's drive core offline, at the three Geth cruisers. However, you will save the Heavy Cruiser for last, and you will remain with that fighter. Our latest intel does tell us that while the Geth are only focused on one quarter of the planet, and their fleet is largely deployed as such, their cruisers are distanced. In order to ensure that the fleet can remain together and have line of sight on the cruisers for the initial barrage, we will enter the system at long range facing the planet's north pole." The hologram zoomed out to show the fleet appearing from above the planet, looking down at the Geth fleet. The cruisers all spaced out as much as they can be from one another, with the Heavy Cruiser in the center. Seconds before the fleet arrives will be when the fighters launch their torpedoes and retreat and attempt to regroup. You, Normandy, will however take the opportunity to launch Javelin missiles at the ship's engines to ensure that they cannot flee with the artifacts. Afterwards you will be acting as a one-frigate wolfpack squadron. Your task will be to surprise and neutralize all the ships coming in to join the fight before they can take position and become a coordinated threat."

"The initial phase of the assault will be made by the Hawking, our Dreadnaughts, and our heavy cruisers which will drop out of FTL at long range. All Trident fighter wings, Dagger Interceptors, and Cavalry boarding craft will be launched as our main weapons open fire to neutralize the cruisers first. Five seconds after we drop from FTL will be the rest of the fleet will appear at medium and close ranges to pick apart the remaining vessels by surprise. Any fire taken by the Heavy cruiser must only be to disable, and none of it to strike the drive core or the central body of the ship. The majority of our fighters and interceptors will guide the Cavalry to the Heavy Cruiser, protecting them from the GARDIAN lasers. And as they will not be able to immediately break through the hull into the deck, considering the Geth's ship designs, they will also protect the Cavalry from any Geth fighters that might try to shoot them off. The remaining fighters and interceptors not assigned to this task will be assisting bombers in targeting the other ships. You will all be assigned your squadrons and your exact positions in half an hour. Any questions?"

* * *

 **Tali'Zorah vas Neema**

It wouldn't be long now until I'd need to return to Engineering in preparation for the coming battle. While I trusted my Engineers to handle most of it so that I could see and speak with John before the battle, I still had some more specific preparations that I'd need to do and others that I feel obligated to do. Admittedly it's not like we're talking about anything important, simply getting to know each other more like our conversation a few days ago. On top of knowing his hobbies and preferred books, I also know that he has a liking for candy that tastes like cherries. A berry on Earth. Kasumi had already offered to help me find some for him next time we docked somewhere. As for the simulator games he mentioned he enjoyed growing up on Arcturus, the simulator pod that's in the Lounge Kasumi already helped me add the same kind of simulators to its library. He may not be able to enjoy those right now, but when he's allowed out of the med-bay it should certainly help pass the time until he's cleared again to go back to work. Now I was simply sitting in a chair beside Shepard's bed, holding his hand when the door to the med-bay opened with a woman's shouting,

"John!" Something about the voice sounded familiar as John's face shrunk to an emotion I've seen only rarely. Terror. While this was all happening fast, I turned to look at the source of the voice and that was something I recognized. Hannah Shepard. Oh. This would have been a good time for me to have been in Engineering, I think. She had quickly checked the room, seeing Chakwas first. "Hi Karen, good to see you. John!" she stopped herself for a moment and then quickly saw him in the medical bed, gripping my hand, it was honestly starting to hurt. She stormed over, her face stoic, and I froze as, for a full second, she stared at our hands before returning her gaze to John.

"Good to see you too, Hannah," Doctor Chakwas called out in the moment of silence.

"Uh…" John gulped. "Hi mom." A flurry of different emotions went across Hannah's face in waves. Anger being held in check, shock, sadness, before she launched herself down at her son and wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him and slightly shoving me out to the side as a result.

"Count yourself lucky that we've spoken already. Or I'd be raising all nine circles of hell on you right now. And I would be slapping the ever-loving shit out of you," her voice muffled by the medical garb he was wearing.

"Chest still sore," he groaned. "Good to see you too," he added as she released some of her grip. She held him a moment longer before releasing his chest, grabbing his head pressing her lips against his forehead for a solid two seconds, releasing him.

And then slapping him.

"Yeah. Alright. What was that one for?"

"Not telling me about your new girlfriend." Keelah.

"Yeah, that's uh… That's fair," he rubbed the side of his face.

"See that? Tali, was it?" After a moment as the shock wore off, I nodded. "He's embarrassed but he didn't deny it. You have his father and I to thank for that. Raised him right," she winked. Well. I suppose she doesn't have a problem with it. "So how long has this been going on? Come on, girl, speak. I'm happy about this and we only have so long to speak."

"Um… Er-I-"

"Mom, relax. This is all a bit sudden; she's getting anxious. Let her breathe."

"Oh alright, sorry dear," she smiled at me and back to John. "So?"

"Well, we've talked and we both know that we've had a thing for each other for quite a long while. It was more or less right after I woke up that we met again on Freedom's Progress. Before I left, we made sure to chat, and… came to more of a direct understanding. It was after Horizon that she was able to join up, and we had one more chat that… confirmed things is a fair word for it."

"I hope this isn't a sensitive question for your people, Tali, has he seen under the mask?" Shepard immediately began to smile, warmly, looking right at me.

"Y-yes…" I was wringing my hands rapidly now.

"And?" She turned back to John, grinning.

"Like I've told her before. Beautiful doesn't do it justice."

* * *

 **Lieutenant James Vega**

My squad and I, normally stationed on Fehl Prime since we kicked out those Blood Pack assholes, had been running double duty, waiting for the call to return to the Hawking in case they needed us. In two years? Nothing. Then we got these Geth putos poking around Alliance territory again. My squad and I were on the Hawking for the Armstrong Nebula too, but that wasn't a fight for us Meatheads. Esteban got all the fun there.

Right now? The Hawking and the fleet were in the second half of our FTL, the ship turning around and slowing down before we turn around one last time and exit. I had heard some of the plan through Esteban, since his boys would be dealing with the fleet while we just sat in the Cavalry craft and hoped to not just explode. Something was sneaking in ahead of us and dropping off some fighters to torpedo the Geth Cruisers. A stealth ship. They probably made a new Normandy after two years, but I saw the news. That Westerlund news interview, other reports. The Commander's back.

But right now, my squad was shooting the shit in the Cavalry. But we had Esteban on comms till the clarions rang. He uh… really needed to be talking to buddies the whole while. He had a Husband on Ferris Fields, he was there, refuses to talk about what happened, and the entire colony except him is just… gone. Not the planet, but the people. Real freaky shit. If we return to Fehl Prime and everyone there is just gone? April? Christine? And, well, of course Treeya. That's not how I want to lose my chance, to be more casual about it.

Captain Toni had just finished going over the mission one last time, he's a hard ass like that but I still respect the hell out of him. And like normal Essex was the first to make things casual again. The Blonde Biotic.

"The Alliance doesn't have any problems with taking Geth trophies, right?"

"Doesn't matter, Essex, we don't have time for that. The Geth flagship is their heavy hitter. We need to get in and out so the fleet can take it down. And the longer we're in there, the more likely our ride out might get shot," Toni answered, staring him down.

"And if you want to cut off a finger, your knife won't work anyways," Nicky added. The Egghead of the group. That's part of them being robots. You have to shoot them, not stab them."

"Essex if you are the reason your sorry asses are too slow and our ride out gets shot while I'm still waiting in it, I will make sure my haunting ghost is the reason you die on there," Mason, our pilot warned.

"Anyways, I think I'd like to see your resident Beefstick Shouldercheck try to wrestle one."

"Make sure we dock, and you may get the chance, Esteban," I smirked. It was a thing for the squad. I was the one with the biggest build and everyone knew it. So, they liked making dumbass nicknames based off it for me like I do for them.

"If it makes you daydream, Cortez, don't bother. I'm sure all his steroids made him a bit impotent," Milque, the marksman threw his punch.

"Your mother was a cow, Milky," I retorted. Kamille was the only one still quiet for now, just enjoying the banter. And then came the Clarions blared, everyone immediately locked it up, helmets on, suits sealed, strapped in and secured. Esteban wished us luck, and we him, dropping the call and the display rigged into the craft that will let us see from the front of the craft while we're in transit lit up. We only saw the far end of the hangar and another Cavalry in its docking bay for now. We felt the ship turn one more time through the FTL, and a moment later the hangar doors began to open, the lights across the hangar glowing green, and Mason launched the Cavalry. It's a Cylindrical craft with an automated defense turret above the cockpit to protect from hostile fighters, but otherwise defenseless save for the thick armor. At the end the craft came to a point, a large drill head that can be jettisoned once we breach into the hull. Along the left and right were a pair of mag clamps, and where corners would be, four harpoons to stick into the ship. When the drill head gets jettisoned, it reveals our exit ramp, which opens for us to pour through.

As we departed the hangar, we caught a glimpse of the Kilimanjaro charging its main cannon. The Brass was being quiet about these too, but I had heard about them from Esteban. Turians and Alliance worked together to make them using scrap from the Battle of the Citadel. I don't know what it's called, I don't know how it works, but from everything I've heard, it's one helluva upgrade. The barrel, practically extending across the dreadnaught's hull, and some blue light starting to show from the barrel. The Cavalry turned in formation with the other boarding craft to face the Geth fleet, and the tops of most of the ships, but we couldn't see shit, too far out. Just the planet. We were still technically in the planet's orbit, but it's a planet. We were close to it and if I were to look out the hull to the right, it's all I would see.

Then a pair of large blue beams shot forward from both the left and the right, from the Kilimanjaro, and one of the other dreadnaughts. If I'm honest, I only knew the Kilimanjaro was that as I saw its name along the hull. I couldn't see the target; I couldn't see the hit. Just a pinprick of light in the distance blooming. Then out of FTL came the rest of the fleet. Anything smaller than a heavy cruiser, and the fighters tightened formation around the boarding craft, protecting us, but also blinding us from what was mostly going on. All I knew was that we were approaching quickly. What was not comforting, was the occasional… gap made in the fighters protecting us. Whenever that happened, the surrounding craft tightened up to try and protect us still, but it did let us see more and more of what was outside of the 'shield.' At the moment, nothing. Might just be a bad angle. But soon a big gap was made ahead of us. I could see the Geth cruisers and the Heavy cruiser. The Cruisers were wreckage, their drive cores blown. The heavy cruiser clearly had gotten its engines wrecked; they were burning in all the wrong ways. But it had still rotated with its front facing the fleet. And us. Freaky bug ships.

The formation moved to the right. Now gaps were being made more frequently, and I saw a Cavalry ahead of us take a hit from the GARDIAN lasers. It was still up for now, but barely. Before another took an unlucky shot to the back near the engines, and it just detonated. Poor bastards. Suddenly, the fighters all pulled off, and we saw nothing but Geth ship hull, the monitor going dark and the Cavalry rocked as we impacted the Geth ship. With the atmosphere in here, we could hear sounds from the inside of our ship as the drills activated, but not the scraping of metal and such on the other side.

"Gonna take a moment, fucking robots don't build ships for people," Mason muttered over the intercom as he was locked away in the cockpit compartment. This was definitely longer than normal. "Ha! Got it! I don't know where ground for you to walk on is, exactly. Try just using your zero-g thrusters first," he suggested.

"A-firm, Mason," Toni answered, his voice deep and booming as ever.

"Alright, punched through properly now." We could hear the drill Jettison, launched off by small explosives. "Hey, Kamille, bring me a good souvenir, would you? Maybe something Prothean?"

"Anything for you, babe." The boarding ramp opened, and we were released from the clamps keeping us safe. Essex made a barrier for us to leave with, Toni right behind him, and myself following right behind. Then Kamille, Nicky, and Milque. The drill head had impacted the far wall and was slowly spinning in the zero-g in this… very alien ship. We were about a meter off the ground but weren't taking shots yet. So, we got down and used our mag-boots to settle. Another squad had boarded into the same deck. We had expected another, but we weren't going to wait, as likely if they're not already bursting through, they got shot down. As for the Geth ship, it was dark, no colorations, barely any light. What we were standing on was essentially just a catwalk without railings and leading anywhere that might need maintenance. Nicky, fortunately, had a map for us. Both the squads, which Toni was the ranking officer for both. Nicky pointed us to the right, which did have a door at the far end of the catwalk. Weapons out and ready, we rushed on, breaching the door. As it opened, there was only wall about five meters ahead, and wall along the right. To the left, a hallway. And five bipedal machines with a single glowing eye on their head. They opened fire immediately, killing one of the guys from the other squad as his head vanished as three blue streaks of energy raced towards his head. Two to the shields, one to the head.

"Shit!" a man from the other squad called out. Toni took a grenade from his belt and tossed it, trusting that it wouldn't damage the ship, and as it detonated, Nicky took his chance to peek out and use some tech shit on one, while Essex gave a barrier to let the rest of the squad peek and shout. We took the squad down; one being damaged by the grenade and one definitely wrecked by it. And we proceeded. It was a long, featureless hallway that occasionally broke off towards a door, or taking a right angle to either the right or left. We kept pushing, until Nicky directed us to break off again, this time to the left, I think towards the center of the ship, and the door. We breached it again, but this time Essex was already making a barrier. Geth rounds bounced off and we were able to fire, the room just being another hall with another squad, but we couldn't end it so quickly. Essex needed to drop the barrier and we took cover. They suppressed, Essex made a new barrier and we charged, taking them down.

"We should be coming up on the ship's secure storage. The remaining squads should all be converging here together now." Good. Anything Prothean in here we were to take and bail with. Hopefully the Alliance would get something good out of it. Other squads checked in, and together, from angles across the ship, we breached. It was a surprisingly and comparatively large room of the ship. With a big fucking bipedal Geth in the center. That'll be fun. Well, more fun if it wasn't all our squads converging on it. Tech attacks from all squads went out immediately as we opened fire, focusing on it. We were all taking fire now, as there were more Geth, but this thing needed to go quickly as we all dove for cover across the room. This was more than just relic storage, but supply storage. What seemed like large batteries or replacement parts on top of some objects closer to the room that did not at all look Geth. By the time it was done, Essex had taken a shot in the arm, and ten more marines were dead compared to the seventy originally sent on the mission. And however many died along the way. Some relics could just be strapped to the back of an individual. Some needed two people carrying them on their shoulders together. As for what I got? While it didn't look like anything I had ever seen before, I think it was some kind of gun.

We all retreated to our respective Cavalry craft, and I got the idea that the Geth weren't really prepared to deal with borders. I've no clue why though. I ain't one of the techies, I just shoot shit. By the time we got back, our craft was still there, but the one the other squad had come in on was destroyed, it's wreckage now pushed through into the ship or out in space. So, they took a ride with us. The ramp closed, the mag clamps released, and the harpoons cut their cables, releasing us from the ship, letting us rotate so our engines faced the ship and we could go full speed away from the ship to be out of GARDIAN range before they fired at us. Fighters were still swarming to overwhelm the GARDIAN systems, but you never really know.

"Hey, you'll want to watch this," Mason spoke up for the first time since the start of the mission. The monitor had its view rotated to instead see behind us, the Geth Heavy Cruiser and the trail of our engines. "The last of the boarding parties are reporting clear." There was a lot of wreckage around. Some may have been fighters, some from Geth ships, and some looked to be from Alliance ships. No idea how many or of which class, but they were there. Suddenly, a blue streak punched through the front of the Geth ship, at its weird bug head and all the way through out of the rear of the ship. What the actual fuck did they make? Explosions rippled through the ship before the drive core detonated, the flagship destroyed.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: And in the end I didn't even end up really describing a whole lot of the space battle. It was weird but probably a good challenge to have me write from a perspective that doesn't really know a whole lot about things. Grunts don't get the good info. Also, if I'm honest I've never watched Paragon Lost and I'm not sure if I really plan to. The only reason I know how to describe Toni's voice is because when I went on the Wiki to see his squad and details I should add for Vega because I won't pretend that Paragon Lost or it's characters don't exist, I noticed his voice actor is Travis Willingham. And he would like to rage. I noticed Laura Bailey was also Kamille but I don't know which Laura Bailey voice she used for that character. Regardless, I digress. When describing anything going on in the space battle, I couldn't really justify to myself describing much since Vega and the others were blinded by the fighters protecting them. Plus the distances that the space battles typically take place at. Ya can't see shit till knife fight range, really. Also I couldn't justify making anything really unique for the interior of the Geth ship, because, well, they're robots and are the definition of utilitarian. Any of the interesting shit wouldn't have been in one of the passageways that they barely have a reason to have to connect throughout the ship. As for them not really fighting a whole lot of Geth when inside? Other than it being spread out, remember that the Geth Dreadnought was fucking MASSIVE. Not sovereign sized but massive. It would need more physical Geth platforms than a Cruiser. Much, much more. Plus they were the only incursion in ME3. Alright, that's enough from me. Fucking Doom Eternal is coming out and the world has given me a reason to binge through it in bliss.**


	60. Arrangements

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guys, hope y'all are staying safe with all the BS going on. Doom eternal is fantastic btw. And should have another chapter out before too long. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Commander John Shepard**

Chakwas had made sure I was unconscious for the duration of the battle to make sure I wouldn't feel discomfort or pain from being strapped down as the gravity was turned off, all power going to combat related systems. But she also ensured I was woken up shortly after so I could be present for the debrief. On the plus side, I was finally cleared to walk around and stop being bedridden. And a bit early too. Still not cleared for combat, but at least I'm able to use my damn legs, take a shower, stop needing a bedpan and catheter. Naturally I ensured to take a quick shower before getting Garrus and Tali to join me on the shuttle to the Hawking. Garrus as he was my XO taking command of the ship for the battle, and Tali as Garrus had dropped a mention of her Cyclonic shield tech. Garrus took control of the shuttle while I remained in the crew cabin with Tali, a display by the cockpit entrance showing what was in front of the shuttle. The fleet was still in system but had repositioned away from any debris while smaller craft were going around picking up escape pods or jettisoned fighter cockpits while damaged ships were undergoing what minor repairs they could without a shipyard. Patchwork. Without hassle we came to dock inside the Hawking, the ship itself untouched by the battle. Though I imagine it's missing several wings of it's single-man craft. And boarding craft.

The shuttle made its landing, and I stood, Garrus entering the cabin from the cockpit and the doors opening. My breath still felt shallow, but I was used to it and in control of it. It also was still weird feeling hollow in the left portion of my chest. We stepped out and the pair of Marines on Guard duty I saw shift immediately from a more casual stance to rigid attention. Either out of discipline or recognition. We simply got into the elevator and made our way down to the bridge, where the Yeoman directed us to the war room. In the security room beforehand, there was a moment of hassle with the shield generator prototype Tali had brought along, but Spectre status comes in handy. As annoying as it was to need it here. The war room was dimly lit with a holo table displaying the planet and the fleet's current position. On the far side, centered, was Vice Admiral Bradford and the CO's of all surviving ships. As well as any recovered surviving CO's of lost ships. My mother was waiting by the door, happy to see me and pleasantly surprised to see me on my feet.

"My apologies, Admiral. My medical officer cleared me to leave the med-bay and I needed to ensure I was presentable. One of the Captains spoke up before Bradford could.

"Commander I understand the Normandy is in an… unorthodox position, and that you chose a Turian for your XO, considering the nature of the ship's construction and your history with him, but why the Quarian? Mom shot a glare at him, I noticed, Bradford with a disapproving glance.

"Captain Abrams do not speak out of turn. However, while I would have phrased the question differently, why has she accompanied you here, Commander?"

"Tali'Zorah vas Neema is my Chief Engineer and was also present and a key member for the entirety of my campaign against Saren. As for why she is here," I still would need to interrupt myself to take a breath, but less frequently than when I was still adapting to the one lung. "I understand that Garrus mentioned a new development in Barrier tech perhaps in exchange for the Normandy receiving new weaponry. Tali is the genius behind its design, construction, and it's testing, and has brought a working prototype for that discussion after the debrief." It was not lost on me that Tali had begun wringing her hands.

"Very well. I'll alert the Hawking's Chief Engineer to come and run our own tests to verify after the debrief," she keyed at her console quickly and looked back up. "Now, as should be obvious today's operation was a success. The Geth fleet has been wiped out and all Prothean artifacts, at least those that were being stored, have been recovered and secured aboard the Hawking. The Alliance is sending an Occupation task force, salvage teams to harvest and reverse engineer from the remains of the Geth fleet, and a Battalion of Marines to secure the Geth dig sites with reinforcements available if needed. Additionally, a Human led Council Excavation and Archaeological team will be arriving after the all clear to find any and all artifacts that the Geth may not have had the time to recover themselves. All moderate to critically damaged vessels will be cleared to return to an Alliance shipyard for repairs once all ships are cleared for relay transit. You will be under escort by a squadron of frigates. The rest of the fleet will remain in system until the Occupation task force arrives."

"All ships performed their assigned tasks to the letter. The immediate neutralization of the cruisers and the bomber wings damaging the Heavy Dreadnaughts main weapons and several GARDIAN batteries were no doubt crucial to the outcome of the Operation. Keeping the remainder of the Geth fleet scattered and disorganized proved simple. Despite the loss of several of our own Corvettes and Destroyers. Normandy, once again your role was also critical, and we likely would have suffered severe losses if not for your presence. Unfortunately, all together, we lost approximately Fifty-six percent of our fighters, bombers, and interceptors ensuring the boarding craft reached their destination. Two were still lost with all hands, and a quarter of the surviving boarding craft were destroyed by Geth fighters. However, no Marine was left without extraction, finding a place among the other surviving craft. Marine forces suffered losses of twenty-four souls. We're still picking through the wreckage for survivors, but I'll see to it that each member of every wing and every marine involved in the operation, living and dead, will be receiving medals for this. I want a full status report of every ship and a timetable on readiness for transit by the end of the hour. You will receive your orders after I read through them. Anything to add?" Bradford asked the room. No one spoke.

"Dismissed. And send in Chief Engineer Holland."

"Permission to remain, Vice Admiral? I can inform my XO of your orders," mom requested.

"Granted, Captain." Mom thanked her and quickly typed a message on her Omni-tool as the last of the other Captains departed. After them came a brown-haired woman wearing the Alliance engineer's uniform, marked with fresh grease, oil, the kind of filth one gathers working on engines and its parts in this day and age. Especially during combat and any repairs after.

"What can I do for you, Ma'am?" she asked Bradford. "Chief Engineer Samantha Holland, this is Commander John Shepard of the Normandy, his XO Garrus Vakarian, and his Chief Engineer Tali'Zorah vas Neema," she introduced, gesturing at each of us.

"Honored to meet ya, Normandy. Sorry I'm not more presentable. But I'm guessing this isn't a social call."

"I've been informed that Ms. Zorah has developed and successfully simulated a new development on barrier technology that improves on the current method."

"Apologies, but, no. The prototype I have here, of Cyclonic Barrier Technology, I ran countless simulations before building the prototype, then tested it physically. After some fine tuning, this prototype works exactly as projected. I have tested it working in concert with two other prototypes spaced apart as they would be on any starship, and it also works as projected, tripling even the best barriers we have at this time."

"And I would simply like you to verify the simulations and test results," Bradford added. Holland let out a whistle. "Alright, you got my attention," she began approaching, already getting her Omni-tool prepared. How'd you accomplish this? I don't imagine it was as simple as throwing more juice to it."

"No, but the truth is comically simple. Instead of generating a static kinetic barrier, as in that it just stays in place, emitted, Cyclonic Barriers oscillate, rapidly. They don't take the impact rather than redirect it. As a result, it may even be effective against disruptor torpedoes."

"Huh, go figure," Holland remarked, hooking up to the prototype as she began to run her own simulations before activating the prototype for the test run. And they quickly descended into talking shop. "So, it's like shooting a target at the center of a ball of… swiss cheese I guess." That comparison got a laugh from me. "Eh, ball full of holes," she added, quickly noticing the confusion. "Just so happens that the ball is spinning fast as shit. But with all that movement I imagine they'll need maintenance if not replacement frequently."

"They would, but it's my belief that improving defensive capabilities to this extent is worth the additional maintenance."

"Fair, the brass may wince at the thought of putting these on anything more than a Frigate, at least until someone develops parts with more longevity. And what if an emitter breaks? Could mean some unpredictable ME fields going through the ship."

"If it can be locked in the emitting position, it will be while the rest of the emitters continue to oscillate. One portion of the shield that's weaker. However, if it can't, that emitter will be shut off and the array will return to acting like a standard barrier array to maintain full coverage. And that was when they descended beyond my realm of understanding. Mom tossing me an amused smirk at watching my girlfriend go off about tech she developed, until they finished some baseline simulations and tests.

"Ma'am," Holland called out. "The eggheads on Arcturus are going to have one sad bar crawl when they hear about this and know that they didn't think of it."

"Excellent. Commander, your XO mentioned how this technology might be a useful exchange to receive new armaments?" You know what? Why not really go and try to screw over Cerberus more?

"Not quite, Vice Admiral. I would like to request that we contact Admiral Hackett."

"Very well," Bradford eyed me curiously. "Holland, dismissed."

"Yes Ma'am. Here, Zorah," Holland transferred contact info to Tali. "I'll let you know if anything about this comes to mind for improvements." As Bradford began making the call, she waved us back to join her on her side for the call. Not even a minute later Hackett responded, a display appearing behind the holo-table's projections. Despite being Fifty-One and likely with a little under a century left, he still looked aged. The stress of Command. Older man in his dress blues, Alliance cap.

"Vice Admiral Bradford, Captain and Commander Shepard. I've just given the orders to the forces on their way to Verr. What's the purpose of the call?"

"I mentioned briefly in my report the potential advancement in shield technology that was mentioned by the Normandy's XO, Vakarian, developed by Chief Engineer Tali'Zorah. My Chief Engineer has just finished validating the results and we do indeed have the next advancement. I am calling as the Commander has an… alternative idea as to the exchange of this information for Normandy's armaments."

"Very well. Go on, Commander."

"While I want to ensure that Tali's name stays forever tied to her creation, with the Reapers on the horizon, we're all of the same mind that this technology needs to be spread amongst the Council races and of course the Migrant Fleet. Somewhat similarly but more liberally than that new main weapon that a playback of the battle showed the Kilimanjaro firing. I'm aware of the Thanix cannon and how it was developed by reverse engineering Sovereign's weaponry by a joint Turian/Human effort. The Normandy needs this weapon if we're going up against the Collectors. To say nothing of the Reapers. However, I am very far from eager to allow Cerberus any amount of ease in gaining Thanix or Cyclonic Barrier Technology short of them developing it themselves. I'm not confident that the Normandy could receive a Thanix cannon or replace the current shield array with Cyclonic Barriers in any Alliance port or Shipyard without it becoming very simple for specs or components to end up in Cerberus hands. It is my belief that a wiser course of action would be for the Alliance, in exchange for being among the first to have access to Cyclonic Barrier technology, to arrange for the Co-Designed Normandy to receive these upgrades from a Turian shipyard. However, I believe I can ensure that neither the Alliance nor the Hierarchy are the ones footing the bill for any of the work either." Hackett began to smirk. And then chuckled.

"Commander, I like the way you think."

"Deviously petty. Atta boy," Mom added.

"I'll work my angles on the Hierarchy and share your plan with Anderson so he can work it from the angle of a Councilor. I'll send word of any developments."

"Thank you, Sir."


End file.
